Gusau — The Zamfara State police command has announced the arrest of an 85-year old man alleged to be a local gun manufacturer, Baushe Makeri of kotorkoshi village in Bungudu local government area of the state.

While parading the suspect with 11 locally made guns in his possession, along with nine other armed robbery suspects, the state commissioner of police, Alhaji Mohammed J. Abubakar, said the old man was arrested for supplying guns to armed robbers.

"The arrest of Baushe followed the arrest of one notorious criminal cum armed robber, Abba Abdullahi of Kotorkoshi village with one locally made pistol in his possession. When interrogated, the suspect told us that he got the gun from the grandpa and we swiftly arrested him. During our search, we got 11 locally made guns in his possession," he stated.

He disclosed that the case has been forwarded to the state Criminal Investigation Department (CID) for further investigation and prosecution accordingly.

However, in an interview with Baushe, he denied the allegation levelled against him by the police that he supplied armed robbers with guns.

His words: "I have been doing the business for long and I don't supply any armed robber with guns and I will never do such a thing because I know it is not good. I am a bona fide member of Den Gun Manufacturers Association of Nigeria, Zamfara State chapter ," he added.

In a related development, the command has paraded nine suspected armed robbers who have been terrorising the people of the state.

Five of the suspects were reportedly arrested in Mada village in Gusau local government while two of them were apprehended in Dansadau in Maru local government area.

The police commissioner also paraded one Abubakar Chomo, who confessed to be among the armed robbers that attacked the vice chairman of the All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP), Alhaji Ibrahim Wakkala at his Gusau resident.

He appealed to the people of the state to support the command with vital information that would assist them in effective policing of the state and assured the people that the source of their information will not be reveal no matter the circumstances.