The Zamfara State Police Command dismantled a kidnapping ring and detained six suspects, among them the leader of the kidnapping of the suspect’s mother.
Speaking to journalists at the Zamfara State Police Headquarters, the state police commissioner said that police officers had acted on information obtained through community policing. He did so through the command’s spokesman, SP Mohammed Shehu.
The suspects were identified as Thomas Yau of Maikarfi Local Government Area of Kaduna State, Abdulsamad Mohammed, Bello Abdullahi and Abubakar Namadi.
Others are Suleiman Gabriel and Christopher Gabriel, all of the same address.
Speaking about the arrest, he said: “On 12th February 2023, Zamfara Police Command through its community policing engagement acted on intelligence information that led to the busting of a kidnapping syndicate and the arrest of six notorious kidnappers who have been terrorising different villages in Kaduna, Kano and other neighbouring states such as Zamfara, Sokoto and so on.”
Throughout the course of the inquiry, it was found that the suspects had committed a string of kidnappings in which an indeterminate number of persons were taken and millions of naira were demanded in ransom, the speaker added.
“Each suspect went on to describe how many kidnappings he took part in and what role he played in each one.
“Surprisingly, one of the suspects, Thomas Ya’u, admitted that he planned the abduction of his biological mother and three other people sometime last year; as a result of the abduction, they obtained N30 million from family members as ransom, and in exchange, he was handed one million as his part. The case is being quietly investigated and will be brought up for prosecution in court.
The police official continued by saying that the command also apprehended a female gunrunner who specialized in providing weapons to criminals and bandits in Zamfara and neighboring regions.
He claimed that the suspect, Fatima Sani, who was from the state’s Kaura Namoda Local Government Area, had 325 rounds of AK-47 live ammo on her.
Shehu recalled: “On February 13, 2023, Police detectives apprehended the female gunrunner who was in possession of 325 rounds of live ammunition. This arrest was made in response to intelligence about the woman’s movement with the said exhibit from Lafia in Nasarawa State to a notorious bandit’s kingpin who was hibernating in the Zamfara forest.
“Upon questioning, the suspect admitted to providing three AK-47 guns and 1,000 rounds of AK-47 live ammunition to bandits operating in Zamfara in the past. The suspect will be charged with a crime and brought to court for prosecution as part of a covert investigation.
The arrest of Rabiu Umar of Gusau, who had 1,000 registered MTN SIM cards that were reportedly sold to bandits and other criminals, was also made public by him.
“On February 15, 2023, we received information that the suspect had been observed in possession of an untold number of registered MTN sim cards.
“Police agents sprang into action, detained the culprit, searched him immediately, and found the exhibits on him. According to the suspect’s confession, the sim cards were being sold to consumers seeking registered sim cards, the author said.
“It is well known to everybody that the NCC no longer permits the sale of registered sim cards of any networks,” he continued. The goal of the inquiry is to identify and apprehend other offenders before bringing charges against them to court.