Kaduna--Bandit attacks on rural communities in Zamfara State have taken another dimension as the hoodlums now concentrate in raping married women and girls in their family homes.
This came on a day suspected bandits arrested by the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps NSCDC and personnel of the 176 Guards Battalion of the Nigerian Army, told their interrogators that they had sponsors.
This is even as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, yesterday placed a N20 million bounty on three notorious kidnappers terrorising the territory.
The bandits also killed locals and committed other obnoxious crimes in Kalgon Kunci village of Tsafe Local Government Area of Zamfara State, according to a local who pleaded anonymity.
Speaking in an interview with the BBC Hausa Service monitored in Kaduna yesterday, a resident of the area alleged that the situation had made 70% of the villagers to relocate to other places.
"Previously the bandits would come to our community, humiliate us, rustle our animals and abduct people for ransom. Now, they come in broad daylight and remain till midnight.
"They will be dressed in uniform carrying weapons. I swear, it has reached a level that they would enter any house they liked and rape women.
"If any woman resists them, they would abduct her, do whatsoever they want with her in the bush and bring her back after two, three or four days," said the resident who pleaded anonymity.
He said for over 10 years, no single policeman was deployed to the area, a situation that allowed the bandits to humiliate members of the community.
"We are now under the control of these bandits. During the harvest season, they asked us to give them N15 million before we can harvest our farm produce. All households contributed and we gave them the money.
"Three days after, they stopped us from harvesting and set our farm produce on fire," he lamented.
He alleged that they cried to the authorities to come to their rescue to no avail, adding that this has forced majority of the people to relocate.
"Whoever has a place to run has left. People are leaving Kuncin Kalgo on daily basis," he said.
Reacting to the development, the Zamfara State Governmernt said it is taking appropriate steps towards putting an end to the menace.
Spokesman of the governor of the state, Sulaiman Bala Idris, said yesterday: "The situation is worrisome and government is taking the right step to bring an end to it.
"Not only in that community, but also to bring a lasting end to this crisis by Almighty Allah's grace."
We have sponsors, suspected bandits tell security personnel
In a similar development, suspected bandits arrested by the Federal Capital Territory FCT Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC, and personnel of the 176 Guards Battalion of the Nigerian Army have told their interrogators that they have sponsors.
The Commander of FCT NSCDC command, Olusola Odumosu, who disclosed this when he paraded 42 suspects at the command headquarters in Abuja yesterday, also announced that the Corps' collaboration with the Department of State Services, DSS, paid off with the arrest of five members of a vigilance team who used their positions to vandalize some critical national assets within the FCT.
Parading the suspects, Odumosu said: "I gave a fresh charge to the officers and men to step up our game against criminal elements within our territory using intelligence gathering.
"I am happy to announce to you today (yesterday) that the charge is paying off. Acting on credible intelligence and in collaboration with the 176 Guards Battalion of the Nigerian Army, 42 suspected bandits and terrorists operating under the cover of being miners of solid minerals have been arrested. The arrest took place on Monday, February 11, 2024, at about 0600hrs.
"The suspects were intercepted at the forest of Tsaumi Village bordering Lambata in Gurara Local Government Area of Niger State".
According to him, preliminary investigations by the Corps revealed that the suspects are bandits fleeing the on-going onslaught of the military operation in Zamfara State through the forest zone of Niger State into the FCT through Gwagwalada Area Council, enroute Pai Village of Kwali Area Council.
"In the course of interrogation, they were unable to disclose the mining site and company name they alleged to be working for.
"Further investigations revealed that this group of young men have been operating within Zamfara, Kogi and Niger states.
"At the time they were intercepted, they had no evidence to show they were going on mining activities which suggests they have a sinister agenda.
"They have also confessed to having sponsors. However, investigations in that regard is still ongoing and you will be intimated when it is concluded," Odumosu said.
He said the suspects had been cooperating with the corps by giving useful information that will help determine their level of involvement in banditry and kidnapping activities in the FCT.
Odumosu added that when investigations were concluded and their level of involvement in crime determined, necessary further actions would be taken.
"In the same vein our operational synergy with the men of Department of State Security Services led to the arrest of one Bartholomew Anthony, a male, 27years old from Kaura Local Government area of Kaduna State. He was arrested at the mabushi axis of the FCT.
"The said Bartholomew Anthony was arrested with the following exhibits...
Pieces of Armoured cables, one hacksaw, one Jack knife, one Techno Bolton handset and N20,000.
"The suspect made useful statements that led our operatives to arrest three of his other accomplices, including Hakilu Muhammed "M" 25 years old from Shango LGA Niger state, Abdulrahaman Abbas "M" 30 years old from Unguwan Sarki Piako LGA, Niger state, and Samaila Promise "M" 20 years old from Karim Lamido, Taraba state.
"All four arrested suspects belong to a syndicate that specialize in vandalism and theft of armoured cables in the FCT," he said.
According to him, the suspects belong to a vigilance group who use their purported membership of the security outfit to commit heinous acts.
Odumosu added: "We have profiled them and their statements obtained, they will soon be arraigned in court for justice to prevail.
"I want to assure residents of the FCT that we will not rest on our oars until we rid the FCT of all criminal elements that want to make the FCT unsafe for habitation.
"I want to also appeal to the general public to report all suspicious persons, as security is everyone's business."
Wike places N20m bounty on 3 wanted notorious kidnappers
Meanwhile, FCT Minister, Nyesom Wike, yesterday placed a N20 million bounty on information that could lead to the arrest of three suspected, notorious kidnappers terrorising the area.
Wike's position came as operatives of FCT police command bust a notorious 7-man kidnapping syndicate responsible for the abduction of several persons across Abuja in the last couple of weeks.
He placed the N20 million reward during the parade of 23 suspected kidnappers, armed robbers and one chance criminals at the FCT command headquarters, Garki, Abuja, vowing that the days of insecurity and tension in the capital city were over.
Charging the command to deploy more intelligence in stamping out all forms of criminality in Abuja, the minister said: "Go and fish the three remaining kidnappers out wherever they are. I put N20million bounty on their head. Go all out for them and fish them out. Everyday is for the thief, one day is for the owner of the house.
Speaking further on his determination to flush out kidnappers and criminals in the FCT, Wike said: "They have terrorized us but we told them we are coming. As you say we will not sleep, you will not sleep too."
He commended the FCT Police boss, Benneth Igweh, for the efforts so far, saying "when you were posted to Port Harcourt, I knew what you did. When you were posted here, I was confident. Please do more on intelligence gathering."
While tasking the media to report achievements of the police as much as they do when they are not achieving, the minister said: "I want to urge journalists to also report the positive side of the command. If FCT is not safe, you as journalists are not safe. Partner with the police and report positively."
However, detailing the arrest of kidnappers, FCT Police Commissioner, Benneth Igweh, said: "On Tuesday, February 13, 2024, at about 5pm, acting on credible intelligence, the operatives of Utako Divisional Headquarters, in concert with the Anti-Kidnapping unit of the command arrested seven wanted kidnapping suspects.
"The suspects are Usman Muhazu, Aliyu Muhammed, Auwal Lahiru, Rabiu Sani, Madina Abubakar, Jonah Elimelechi, and Saminu Idris.
"They were arrested in Pyankasa, Tudun Wada and Ketti village, FCT, in connection with the kidnap of 14 notable persons in the Federal Capital Territory.
"These kidnappers who have been giving FCT sleepless nights and on the wanted list of the command for a long time, have now been arrested.
"They are responsible for the kidnapping of five victims in Federal Mortgage Housing Estate, Kabusa, three persons at Ketti village, Fulani residents of Alhaji Sani, a woman and her gate man in Kabusa Estate as well as One Mr Sunday Zakwai and four others.
"CP Igweh said, "The kidnapping gang equally killed the district head while two staffs were kidnapped at Defence Estate, Kabusa" by the gang.
Similarly, the CP disclosed that a gang of armed robbers and one- chance criminals who have perpetrated several attacks on unsuspecting members of the public, causing pain, injuries have been arrested.
"On Monday, February 11, 2024, at about 4pm, the operatives of the FCT Police Command attached to Mabushi Divisional Headquarters, in the continued fight against criminality arrested eight notorious armed robbery suspects terrorising FCT.
"The suspects are Auwal Yusuf (an ex-convict), Ismail Hudu, Sylvester Poto, Abdusalam Mamuda, Sunday Udoma (Akido), Ifeoma Ngoze Obodo, Muhammed Telegbe and Chocolate Sarah Mohammed Telegbe.
"Acting on credible intelligence, the suspects who are responsible for several one-chance activities in the past were trailed to the central area while attempting to rob some innocent residents and were promptly arrested.
"The suspects confessed to using toy guns and knives to scare their victims to illegally obtain from them. Suspects will be charged to court soon."
The CP also said a total sum of N9 million was recovered from the kidnapping and armed robbery gangs, while other recoveries include 6 AK 47 rifles, bullet proof vestsand a locally fabricated walkie talkie radio.
Declare state of emergency on insecurity, NBA tells Tinubu
Reacting to the security situation in the country yesterday, the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, asked President Bola Tinubu to declare a state of emergency on the issue.
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NBA, which is the umbrella body of legal practitioners in the country, in a state of the nation address it presented in Abuja, maintained that "what Nigerians require is a well thought-out, informed, all-inclusive and purposeful intervention, with as much necessary information made available to the public as made be dictated or permitted by the security situations from time to time."
It urged President Tinubu to show demonstrable commitment to prioritize the security of lives and properties in the country.
The NBA, in the address read by its National President, Mr. Yakubu Maikyau, SAN, who was flanked by all the executives of the association, threw its weight behind the call for the establishment of state police.
It decried that "some Nigerians have lost, and many more are fast losing confidence in the ability of the Federal Government to deal with the security situation in the country."
According to the legal body, "all forms of criminal activities across the nation, howsoever described, by criminal elements by whatever name called, are completely inexcusable and unacceptable."
It said: "The entire country is under siege by terrorists, bandits and criminal gangs. It is no longer easily determinable, if not impossible, which square kilometer of the Nigerian territory is under the authority not control of the Federal Government of Nigeria.
"A situation where criminality dots all over the space known as the Nigeria territory, in a manner that diminishes the presence of law enforcement agencies, directly challenges the sovereignty of Nigeria.
"This is particularly so when we hear that the said bandits and terrorists are foreign nationals.
"If the activities of foreign nationals have been responsible for this high level of insecurity in our nation when the country is not at war, these criminal elements go on to boldly record and send out videos on social media platforms boasting about their strongholds with the territory of the Nigerian state and suffer no consequence for so doing, then there is more to it than meets the eye, and Nigerians need to be better informed of the nature of the insecurity they are dealing with."
Continuing, the NBA, in the letter it wrote to President Tinubu, said: "The entire nation is swimming in the pool of the blood of its citizens and we seen to have become numb to it and insensitive to the bloodletting in this country.
"We appear to have lost our humanity and these incidents are fast becoming a norm and a part of our existence.
"Those entrusted with the responsibility to drive and implement government policies appear to be content with the false sense of security created by the high walls around them and the he few arms-bearing security personnel who keep vigil over them. We must reverse the trend.
