- The Nigeria Police Force has nabbed a notorious kidnap gang in Kogi state
- The gang had kidnapped the mother of Governor Yahaya Bello
- The incident however happened before the governor assumed office
The Nigeria Police Force on Tuesday, July 25 said it had arrested five suspects in connection with the kidnapping of Governor Yahaya Bello’s mother in May 2014.
The News Agency of Nigeria ( NAN) reports that Hajia Hawawu Bello, 80, mother of Governor Bello, the then managing director of Fair Plus Transport Services, was kidnapped in Uvete, Adavi local government area of Kogi state, on May 29 2014.
The suspects are: Iliyasu Suleiman, 44, former Councillor and gang leader, Danjuma Ibrahim, 26, Iliyasu Obadaki, 35, Alhaji Nasiru, 43, and Hafiz Yakubu.
Police IGP and his team have been on their toes ensuring that Nigeria is crime free. Photo credit: NPF
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The Force Spokesman, CSP Jimoh Moshood, disclosed this at a news conference on Tuesday, July 25 in Abuja.
Moshood said that items recovered from the suspects include: two AK 47 rifles; 20 live cartridges; one army camouflage inner wear; two army camouflage pair of trousers and two army camouflage caps.
Others are; one black Beretta; two plastic guns; three sharp knives and one axe.
He said that all the suspects had confessed to the kidnapping of the governor’s mother and other robberies in FCT, Kogi and Niger.
The Force spokesman said that efforts were being intensified to arrest other fleeing members of the gang while the suspects would be charged to court on completion of investigation.
He enjoined members of the public to cooperate with the police to prevent crime and criminality in their localities.
Governor Yahaya Bello should be happy about the news
In a related development, Moshood said the Inspector-General of Police, Mr Ibrahim Idris, had deployed a joint police team to the Abuja-Kaduna highway.
He said the team comprised Special Police force, Mobile Force, Counter Terrorism Squad, the Force Intelligence Team with its headquarters at Rijanah, Kaduna state.
He said that the team was under specific mandate to root out the kidnap for ransom gangs and armed robbery gangs terrorising the route.
Moshood said that the operation was to compliment and augment the ongoing Joint Police/Military operations on ground before now.
“The police personnel will be proactive and work on actionable intelligence at the disposal of the force and carry out massive deployment,” he said.
He said that Idris urged members of the public, especially commuters and people in towns and villages along the road to assist and cooperate with the police.
NAN reports that the Deputy Inspector-General of Police in charge of operation, Hyacinth Dagala, has been mandated to supervise the operation.(NAN)
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Meanwhile, the Federal Capital Territory police command on Sunday, July 23, arrested the second in command of a unit in Boko Haram at Gwako village in Abuja.
The suspect, 20-year-old Seth Yakubu hails from Obi local government area in Nasarawa state.
NAIJ.com gathered that he was arrested at about 11.30am after police received a tip-off on his suspicious behaviour from people around him.
Watch the NAIJ.com TV video report of the newly reopened Nyanya bus station in Abuja after it was bombed by Boko Haram: