Zamfara State: Police Arrest Eighty-Five Suspects, Recovered Twenty Seven AK47 Rifles

• Police Joint Intervention Force Kill 104 Bandits, Destroys Fifty Bandits Hideouts In Three Camps, Recovers Over Five Hundred Cattle And Seventy Nine Sheep In Zamfara State And Loss One Police Personnel With Twelve Others Injured

The Police Joint Operation Team on Thursday, 29^th November, 2018, repelled ambush attacks from Armed Bandits at Mahanga Forest in Birnin Mogaji LGA of Zamfara State and in the process killed One Hundred and Four Bandits, destroyed over Fifty bandits hideouts in Three Camps, recovered over Five Hundred Cattle and Seventy Nine Sheep from the Bandits, but unfortunately loss a Policeman and Twelve Policemen wounded during the attacks. The Police Team has restored normalcy and peace in the affected areas.

At a press briefing in Abuja on Friday, the Force Public Relations Officer, Ag DCP Jimoh Moshood said that the Inspector General of Police on 9^th November, 2018, deployed Police Joint Intervention Team of about One Thousand (1000) Police personnel comprising the Seven (7) Units of Police Mobile Force (PMF) headed by an Assistant Commissioner of Police, Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU), Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (FSARS), Police Anti-Bomb (EOD) Squad, and conventional Policemen to Zamfara State to rout-out, arrest and prosecute Armed Bandits, Vicious Kidnap for Ransom and Cattle Rustling Gangs operating in some parts of the State.

“The Team have recorded significant progress in the arrest of more than Eighty-Five (85) suspects, recovered Twenty Seven (27) AK47 Rifles and Fifty-Two (52) locally fabricated rifles and other dangerous weapons, Two Hundred and Sixty-Nine (269) Cattle, One Hundred and Nine (109) Sheep already handed over to their owners.

The Police Spokesperson further said that consequent on the ambush attacks on the Police Joint Team which were successfully repelled by the Police Team, the Inspector General of Police yesterday, 29^thNovember, 2018 deployed DIG Department of Operations to Zamfara State to be the overall commander of the Police Joint Intervention Force and add new impetus to the Operations. The DIG has already arrived in Zamfara State overnight with Hundreds of Police Special Forces Personnel, Counter Terrorism Units (CTU), additional Police Mobile Force (PMF), Federal SARS Personnel, Three (3) Surveillance Patrol Helicopters and crew members to Zamfara State to coordinate the operation to completely rout-out all Armed Bandits from Zamfara and other contiguous States.

DCP Jimoh Moshood said also reiterated that the DIG, Department of Operation and the Police Joint Team have been mandated to also coordinate the Commissioner of Police, Zamfara State and personnel of the Command to sustain and restore lasting peace throughout Zamfara State.

It will be recalled  that on Thursday, the Force PRO paraded Armed Bandits arrested by the Police Intervention Force in connection with armed bandits attacks on villages, cattle rustling, kidnappings and killings of innocent people in Zamfara and Sokoto States. 

Exhibits recovered from them includes; Seven (7) Ak47 Rifles, One (1) Dane Gun, One Hundred And Ninety Seven (197) Ammunition, Nine (9) Magazines, Thirty Six (36) Swords, Eight (8) Suspected Fake Military Camouflage Uniforms, Hard Drugs And Charms

“Members of the public with any information or in distress in any part of Zamfara State should call the following Police Joint Intervention Control Centre through the following numbers 08037025670, 08033210966, 08033312261, 08123829666, 09053872244, 07082351758, 08091914752, DCP Moshood concluded.