THE Zamfara State police command has arrested a female gunrunner, Fatima Sani, aged 30, from Kaura Namoda local government area for gun-running.
The Command said the arrest followed intelligence obtained about Fatima’s movement and connection to a notorious bandit kingpin hibernating in Zamfara forest.
This was disclosed in a statement by the Command’s spokesperson, Mohammed Shehu, on Saturday, February 18.
“In the course of interrogation, the suspect confessed to having been in the business, and that she had earlier supplied three AK 47 rifles and 1000 rounds of AK 47 live ammunition to bandits operating within Zamfara.
“Discreet investigation is in progress and the suspect will be charged to court for prosecution,” the police stated.
The Command said that on February 12, 2023, it also arrested some kidnap kingpins, also acting on intelligence.
It added that the kidnap syndicate had been terrorising different villages in Kaduna, Kano and other neighbouring states like Zamfara and Sokoto.
“During the investigation, it was discovered that the suspects had carried out a series of kidnappings where unspecified people were abducted, and millions of naira were collected as ransom.
“Each suspect further narrated the number of kidnappings they had participated in and their role in each kidnapping.
“One of the suspects, Thomas Ya’u, confessed that sometime last year, he masterminded the kidnapping of his biological mother and three others. As a result of the kidnapping, they collected the sum of N30 million from the relations as ransom, and in turn, he was given N1 million as his share,” the statement added.
Members of the kidnap gang arrested included Thomas Yau, Abdulsamad Mohammed, Bello Abdullahi, Abubakar Namadi, Suleiman Gabriel, and Christopher Gabriel.
The Command reassured citizens of their safety before, during and after the forthcoming 2023 general elections.
A reporter with the ICIR
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