JUST IN: Soldiers bust kidnappers’ camps in Edo, arrest 13 suspects, seize weapons

Troops of 4 brigade of the Nigerian Army have raided kidnappers’ hideouts and arrested 13 suspected criminals in parts of Edo North Senatorial District.

The operation, conducted on February 4, involved troops of the Nigerian Army in collaboration with personnel of the Nigerian Air Force, the Edo State Police Command, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, and the Edo State Security Corps.

The clearance exercise, codenamed Operation Igbo Danu 1, targeted Osara community in Etsako West local government area, as well as Auchi and Okpella communities.

During the operation, eight suspected kidnappers and illicit drug peddlers were arrested.

The suspects were identified as Jamilu Mohammad, 25; Kasim Abu, 33; Braimoh Affeez, 31; Sulaiman Hamisu, 36; Lawan Umaru, 25; Bawa Auwal, 24; Musa Umaru, 40; and Amodu Attai, 50.

Items recovered from the suspects include one English pump-action gun, four live cartridges and one locally made pistol.

Other items seized were a point-of-sale machine, two cutlasses, a Nikon digital camera, two Android phones, a metal hook, five bottles of codeine syrup, two weighing scales, and quantities of substances suspected to be cannabis sativa, tramadol, ice, loud and colos. The sum of ₦87,550 was also recovered during the raid.

The Army said the suspects and recovered items were handed over to the Edo State Police Command for further investigation and prosecution.

In a related operation, troops of 4 Brigade, in conjunction with the police, also combed the Aviele forest in Etsako West local government area to flush out suspected kidnappers and terrorists.

During the forest raid, five suspected kidnappers were arrested.

They were identified as Isiaka Abubakar, 37; Mohammad Abubakar, 25; Yusuf Abubakar, 24; Mohammed Somu, 20; and Isiaka Ibrahim, 30.

Two motorcycles, two Android phones and a power bank were recovered from the suspects.

Speaking on the operations, Commander of 4 Brigade, Brigadier-General Ahmed Balogun, warned that Edo state would be “untenable for terrorists, kidnappers and other criminal elements to carry out their nefarious activities”.

Balogun reaffirmed the brigade’s commitment to safeguarding lives and property in the state and commended the collaboration among the security agencies involved.