Bandits’ collaborators won’t go scot-free, DHQ vows

The Defence Headquarters on Thursday vowed to track down and arrest those collaborating with bandits in different parts of the country, adding that the military was devising and deploying new strategies daily to address insecurity.

The Coordinator, Defence Media Operations. Maj. Gen. John Enenche, at a weekly press briefing in Abuja, stressed that the Armed Forces were intensifying operations to root out all criminal collaborators that are giving boost to banditry.

• Bandits ambush Kaduna vigilance personnel, kill 3
• Senate c’ttee to army: Go after bandits, kidnappers

According to him, the bandits have already suffered heavy casualties during offensive operations by the troops as several of them were killed while many others escaped with varying degrees of gunshot wounds.

He disclosed that a number of collaborators had been arrested at different locations by troops, and no fewer than that three bandits’ accomplices were arrested in the North-West between November 12 and 18, 2020.

“Based on credible information that a suspected bandit was sighted at Kukar Samu village in Safana Local Government Area of Katsina State, troops mobilised to the scene and arrested two suspected bandits’ collaborators named Nura Ibrahim and Abdullahi Yusuf while trying to escape with motorcycle belonging to bandits who fled on sighting troops.

“One Sabe Iliya from Muniya village in Safana LGA was also apprehended while pretending to be a farmer but was identified by locals as an informant,” Enenche said.

The Defence Operation spokesperson informed journalists that a large cache of arms and ammunition and other items were captured by troops during the operations in the North-West while identified bandits’ camps were also destroyed.