By Femi Osinusi
The Niger State Police Command has intensified its operations against criminal gangs, with a series of raids and arrests that underscore the growing battle against insecurity in the state.
In one of the most recent operations, the command’s Special Task Team, working alongside members of the Force Intelligence Department’s Special Tactical Squad and local vigilantes, stormed Kokolo Forest in Magama Local Government Area. Acting on credible intelligence, the operatives engaged suspected kidnappers in a fierce gun duel. By the time the exchange ended, three suspects lay dead, several others had fled with gunshot injuries, and a victim held in captivity was rescued. Police say two AK-74 rifles and forty-nine rounds of live ammunition were recovered from the scene. Residents in surrounding villages have been urged to remain vigilant and report anyone spotted with suspicious injuries.
Elsewhere in Minna, police operatives turned their focus on curbing thuggery and armed robbery. A raid in the early hours of September 25 led to the arrest of two young men. Eighteen-year-old Murtala Abbas was found carrying dangerous curved weapons, while 20-year-old Hassan Ibrahim was allegedly caught with two locally fabricated guns, a police T-shirt, damaged walkie-talkies, and substances suspected to be illicit drugs. Investigators say Ibrahim admitted some of the items were supplied by vigilante members, a claim now under scrutiny.
In Kontagora, officers thwarted an alleged fraud attempt involving 28-year-old Bashir Abubakar of Kebbi State. He reportedly tried to obtain a phone worth more than ₦500,000 using a bag filled with papers disguised as money. Shopkeepers identified him as the same man behind a similar scam weeks earlier. Before an angry mob could exact jungle justice, police intervened, rescuing and arresting him.
The suspects, police say, remain in custody as investigations continue, with prosecutions expected soon.
