Police bust foreign robbery syndicate, arrest ex-Boko Haram member

Borno State Police Command has arrested a suspected member of a foreign robbery syndicate in Damasak, Mobar Local Government Area of Borno State.

The police also arrested a repentant Boko Haram member, Baba-Goni Mohammed Ibrahim, for stealing property worth N170,000 in Maiduguri.

Parading the suspects, the State Commissioner of Police, Abdu Umar, said the duo was among 110 suspects that committed 70 crimes in the state.

Speaking to newsmen, the robbery syndicate, Modu Adamu, who was fully kitted in Nigerien military uniform, alleged that he is an indigene of Diffa, Niger Republic.

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Adamu, who admitted that he was involved in three different robbery operations in the areas, said that luck ran out of them when a team of security operatives busted their syndicate

“In our first operation, I was given N130,000, then N50,000 and N10,000 in the second and third operations. However, we mounted a roadblock for the fourth operation when we suddenly sighted a team of policemen.

“In a bid to escape into the thick forest, I was apprehended while the other gang members; Abdu, Kado, Bazamfare, Baida, Bororoji and Umaru escaped,” he said.

On where he got the uniforms and weapons, Adamu said “We buy it from Kaula, a village in Diffa province in Niger Republic. An AK47 rifle is sold at the cost of N700,000 but all the weapons we use were owned by them (gang members).

Abdu said before joining the syndicate, he was tending his father’s flock around the Diffa and Damasak axis, saying he regretted his action.

Fielding questions from newsmen, the repentant Boko Haram insurgent, Baba-Goni, said he was arrested for stealing eight wrappers and a few other apparels belonging to one Hajiya Lami of Mashidmari ward in Maiduguri metropolis.

The 110 suspects paraded by the CP committed various crimes that include homicide, armed robbery, rape, handset snatching and kidnapping.

The CP said the suspects would be charged in court after a thorough investigation, assuring that the command would not relent in its efforts to rid Borno State of crimes.