The Nigeria Police Force on Thursday paraded 59 suspects for their alleged involvement in kidnapping, armed robbery, cattle rustling and other violent crimes.
Seven of the suspects paraded according to the Police were responsible for the kidnap and murder of the Vice Chairman of Abaji Area Council and four others along Suleja-Minna Road in Niger State.
The Suspects include the 60 year old gang leader who is also the armourer of the gang; Bello Alhaji Lawal, Sadiq Danladi, Abubakar Mohammed, Abubakar Usman, Abdullahi Idris, Abubakar Suleiman, and Ibrahim Babangida.
Items recovered from them are; Seven AK47 rifles, 118 rounds of ammunition, nine mobile phones, four pairs of suspected fake military Camouflage uniforms and Charms.
The Police said the suspects were trailed and arrested in their hideout at Tunga Maje forest along Zuba-Gwagwalada Road, Abuja, where the syndicate plan their operations and keep hostage of their kidnap victims.
This is contained in a statement in Abuja on Thursday by the Force Spokesman, Ag. DCP Jimoh Moshood.
The statement reads: โOn 24th November, 2018, the IGP Special Strike Force on violent crimes attached to Operation Absolute Sanity in Gawu Babaginda, Niger State led by DCP Yusuf Kolo, working on actionable intelligence in a follow up of a case of Criminal Conspiracy, Armed Robbery and Kidnapping of the Vice Chairman of Abaji Area Council and four (4) others along Suleja-Minna Road, Niger State, trailed and arrested the above mentioned suspects in their hideout at Tunga Maje Forest along Zuba-Gwagwalada Road, Abuja, where the syndicate plan their operations and keep hostage of their kidnap victims.
โThe suspects on sighting the Police Team opened fire and engage in a serious gun battle with the Police Team that lasted for over an hour. The superior gun power of the Police Team led to the death of three of the vicious and notorious kidnapping/armed robbery gang members and the arrest of Seven other members.
The Police said four victims were rescued from their captivity adding that the suspects have confessed and admitted to be responsible for the kidnap of the Vice Chairman of Abaji Area Council and four others.
โThey have also revealed their various criminal roles in the armed robbery/kidnap operations and murder of the Vice Chairman of Abaji Area council who was one of their victims in the kidnap operation.
The Force said effort is being intensified to arrest other members of the gang indicted in the confessional statements of the arrested suspects adding that they will all be arraigned in court on completion of investigation.
52 other suspects belonging to three gangs who operate in Nasarawa, Niger, Kaduna, Katsina, Zamfara and Sokoto States were also paraded by the Police. One of the suspects, Abdraโuf Yusuf is from Libya and he is said to be a trained gorilla fighter.
The Police also recovered from them; Eight AK47 rifles, one G3 rifle, two Single Barrel gun, one dane Gun, one Revolver Pistol, 145 ammunition, five Live Cartridges, 16 swords, three operational Vehicles of the gangs, two Bajaj motorcycle and charms.
The suspects in the first gang are; Abdulraโuf Yusuf โMโ 45yrs โ Gang Leader, a Libya trained Gorilla Fighter, Bashiru Aminu โMโ 30yrs โ Buys and Supply firearms and ammunition to armed bandits and other members of the group, Aliyu Saidu โMโ 33yrs, Musa Adamu โMโ 35yrs, Isah Haruna โMโ 55yrs
Abdullahi Haruna โMโ 56yrs, Mohammed Tukur โMโ 25yrs, Abdullahi Buhari, Aliyu Abudullahi โMโ 29yrs, Tukur Hassan โMโ 26yrs, Mande Aleri โMโ 30yrs and Sani Ali โMโ 21yrs.
Others are; Shehu Umar โMโ 30yrs, Ibrahim Garba โMโ 21yrs, Mohammed Sani โMโ 30yrs, Mohammed Bello โMโ 35yrs, Sule Dambule โMโ 48yrs, Ahmadu Buba โMโ 27yrs, Mohammed Baude โMโ 63yrs, Abubakar Umar โMโ 52yrs, Abubakar Turai โMโ 66yrs, Abubakar Sala โMโ 37yrs, Ibrahim Mohammed โMโ 31yrs, Abubakar Mande โMโ 20yrs, Abubakar Hussaini โMโ 60yrs, Usman Hassan โMโ 65yrs, Shehu Abubakar โMโ 70yrs, Usman Umar โMโ 18yrs and Yahaya Lawal โMโ 55yrs.
Suspects in the second gang include; Isiyaku Samaila โMโ 37, Mohammed Rilwanu โMโ 40yrs, Usman Sani โMโ 35yrs, Mohammed Shuaibu โMโ 49yrs, Rabiu Tukur โMโ 30yrs, Surajo Suleiman โMโ 45yrs, Abdullahi Yaโu โMโ 30yrs, Abdullahi Ibrahim โMโ 58yrs, Abubakar Ahmed โMโ 42yrs, Musa Abdullahi โMโ 48yrs, Isah Waziri โMโ 35yrs, Shuaibu Ibrahim โMโ 25yrs, Shuaibu Usman โMโ 18yrs, Faisal Surajo โMโ 18yrs, Kamalu Abdulmumini โMโ 30 yrs, and Ibrahim Musa โMโ 28yrs.
Members of the third gang are; Abdulkarim Adamu โMโ 27yrs, Sani Alh Lawal โMโ 20yrs, Umar Garba โMโ 22yrs, Hussaini Mamman โMโ 25yrs, Sani Umar โMโ 23yrs, Musa Ibrahim โMโ 28yrs, and Umar Kiruwa โMโ 30yrs.
Moshood said: โConsequent on recent complaints and reported cases of armed robbery/kidnapping, armed banditry, cattle rustling and other violent crimes in some parts of Nasarawa, Niger, Kaduna, Katsina, Zamfara and Sokoto States, the IGP Special Strike Force on violent crimes attached to Operation Absolute Sanity, working on actionable intelligence further expanded its operations and relentlessly embarked on raids of criminal hideouts, identified kidnappers den and follow up on cases in its effort to continue to actualize its mandate to rid the country of unscrupulous elements, vicious and notorious criminals. These operations led to the arrest of 52 criminal suspects.
โThe suspects have confessed and made useful statements to the Police Investigation Team on their various criminal roles in the recent incidents of kidnapping/armed robbery and other violent crimes in the mentioned States and the above listed exhibits recovered from their possessions. Some of these suspects arrested have also been on the watch list of the Police for quite some time now.โ
The Force said the operation is on-going and more efforts are being intensified to arrest and bring other members of the gang them to justice.