By Walbe Orgak
Commander of
Operation Safe Haven (OSH), Major-General Augustine Agundu, has revealed that a
suspected fleeing Boko Haram terrorist, Mr. Umar Musa Tello, who was seen
loitering around Zawuran village in Bassa LGA of Plateau State, has been
apprehended by troops who were on routine patrol.
He said:
“Preliminary investigation revealed that the suspect fled from Damagum village
in Yobe State due to the ongoing crackdown by troops of Operation Lafiya Dole.
The suspect further confessed that he was a fighter with the Boko Haram
terrorist group for upwards of three years but decided to abscond from the
group due to extreme hardship being experienced.
“He then
claimed that his uncle, one Mr. Ibrahim invited him to Abuja to commence menial
jobs to make ends meet and has so far denounced the Boko Haram terrorist group.
“Furthermore,
he explained that some other fighters have equally absconded and dispersed
around FCT Abuja and Plateau State.”
Major-General
Agundu made the disclosures on Tuesday, February 11 while parading arrested
criminal suspects before newsmen at the headquarters of Operation Safe Haven in
Jos.
Agundu
regretted that the near-perfect peace that was incrementally being pursued in
the state was disrupted in the month of January 2020 following the incidences
that occurred in Mangu and Bokkos Local Government Areas of the state which led
to the loss of lives and properties.
Agundu
attributed both incidences to the activities of a few individuals in the
society who indulged in acts of lawlessness as a way of life, unleashing mayhem
on innocent law-abiding citizens.
He also
insinuated that some leaders of thought “have fallen into the trap laid by
these criminals through their unguarded statements that reflect divisive
tendencies.” He however assured that OSH remains resolute to the actualization
of the Chief of Defence Staff’s operational mandate even in the face of obvious
setbacks.
The
commander posited: “The immediate concern and impediment to a sustained peace
on the Plateau relates to the activities of armed bandits and the menace caused
by suspected cultists.”
On the
arrested suspects, General Agundu said his surveillance team, acting on a
tip-off, apprehended a notorious armed robbery kingpin named Ya’u Mohammed at
Toro village in Bauchi State.
He said:
“The suspect was a leader of an armed robbery syndicate that attacked troops at
Kwanan-Fulani in Riyom LGA of Plateau State which led to the death of one of
our personnel on 28 Sep 19.
“During
interrogation, the suspect confessed to participating in series of armed
robbery and kidnapping activities within Barkin Ladi and Riyom LGAs
respectively.”
In the same
vein, one Mr. Ishaku Pam, a suspected kingpin that specializes in cattle
rustling within Barkin Ladi LGA, was apprehended.
According to
Agundu, a search at his residence at Kapwen village in Foron District led to
the recovery of an AK-47 rifle, 181 rounds of 7.62mm special, 5 rounds of 7.62mm
blank ammunition, two AK-47 rifle magazines, a Nigeria Police Force fragmental
jacket, 1 locally fabricated revolver gun and the sum of N5,500 among others.
The suspect
confessed to purchasing the AK-47 rifle at the sum of N350,000 and the rounds
of ammunition at the sum of N350 from one Mr. Iliya who is currently at large.
The
commander further said that in the course of interrogation, the suspect claimed
that he was once personnel of the Nigeria Police Force but disengaged from
service in 2003 due to the death of his father who was then the Chief of Kapwen
village.
Another
suspect, Mr. John Ibe (a.k.a. Chemical), said to be a notorious cultist who has
been on the OSH watch list, was trailed and intercepted at Makera village in
Riyom LGA. The suspect was reportedly transiting from Jos to Onitsha in a
“Chi-Boy” vehicle.
According to
Agundu, the said Ibe attacked operatives in an attempt to escape from arrest,
but was overpowered. A search conducted on him revealed a locally fabricated
pistol loaded with a cartridge which was recovered from his possession.
In another
development, troops apprehended three suspected cattle thieves namely Isah
Abdullahi, Usman Abdulkareem and Hassan Shuaibu at Nkon village, Kerang
District in Mangu LGA.
The commander
said in an attempt to rustle cows from Nkon village, the suspects were
overpowered by the locals who immediately alerted troops of Operation Safe
Haven.
During
interrogation, the suspects claimed to have taken their cows for grazing from
Bokkos to Pankshin and had no prior knowledge of the attack at Nkon village,
but they are substantially suspected to have participated in the attack of
January 8, 2020.
According to
Agundu, three suspected cattle thieves namely Musa Adamu, Ibrahim Musa and
Al-Hassan Ahmed were arrested at Kombul District in Mangu LGA. The suspects
were alleged to have been involved in the attack at Kulben village, Kombul
District of Mangu LGA which led to the death of 12 persons on January 8, 2020.
During
interrogation, the suspects claimed that they arrived from Toro LGA in Bauchi
State to search for their missing cows which were stolen by unknown persons on
January 3.
Items
recovered from their possession were three cutlasses and a knife. The suspects
are equally substantially suspected to have taken part in the attack at Kulben
village.
In Apata
area of Jos North LGA, a suspected armed robber and cultist, Mr. Daniel Aku,
was arrested. The suspect and his accomplices were said to have stormed the
shop of one Miss Loveth Anieke at Apata and carted away valuables on January
16, 2020.
Aku’s
confession during interrogation led to the arrest of his accomplices, Mr.
Emmanuel Ebube, Timchong Kummep and Solomon Dandong, a suspected gunrunner who
fabricates firearms for criminals and unscrupulous elements, at Abattoir and
Apata in Jos South and North respectively.
It was
revealed that Mr. Solomon Dandong is the father of Amalan Dandong, an
accomplice to Daniel Aku, who is currently at large.
In the
course of investigation, the suspect revealed that he was once arrested by men
of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) for his involvement in gunrunning
activities on February 1, 2018. Thereafter, he was convicted in court on
October 22, 2018 and subsequently released after serving his jail term on April
4, 2019
Agundu
added: “Similarly, troops deployed at a snap checkpoint at Ankwa village in
Sanga LGA of Kaduna State arrested some groups of suspected kidnappers on a
motorbike who terrorize innocent citizens along Jagindi-Bade highway. The
suspects attempted to offer gratification to the troops who insisted on
conducting thorough search on the three suspects.
“Two of the
suspects alighted from the motorbike and fled in disarray. However, one of the
suspects, Mr. Jafar Shuaibu was apprehended. The search conducted on him
revealed a bag containing a total sum of One Million, Seven Hundred and
Eighty-Nine Thousand Naira (N1,789,000.00) only in N500 and N1,000
denominations, two mobile phones and six bathing soaps.
“Preliminary
investigation revealed that the suspect and his accomplices have been involved
in series of kidnapping and other related crimes between Kaduna and Nasarawa
States.
“The suspect
confessed that he belongs to a criminal syndicate comprising of 8 members and a
large sum of money found in his possession was his share from the proceeds of
ransom. It could be deducted that the 6 bathing soap in their possession could
be meant for their victims.”
Continuing,
the Operation Safe Haven commander said: “In a related development, own
surveillance team arrested one Mr. Sunday Landong of Sabon Layi in Langtang
North LGA of Plateau State. The suspect is an accomplice to Mr. Bali Nanpon who
was earlier arrested by troops while negotiating for the sale of an AK-47 rifle
at Dankan village in Kanke LGA of Plateau State on 18 October 2019.”
Major-General
Agundu seized the opportunity offered by the press briefing to reassure the
general public of the total commitment of men and officers of Operation Safe
Haven to protect lives and property.
He said: “We
will continue to remain resolute on our mandate which is geared towards the
restoration of permanent peace across the entire Joint Operation Area.”
He commended
the media for its unflinching cooperation and support towards the fight against
criminality, adding that the criminals being paraded would be handed over to
the appropriate prosecuting agencies for necessary action.
