FCT police arrest 139 bandits, rescue 154 victims

Operatives of the Special Intervention Squad recently launched by the Inspector General of Police, Olukayode Egbetokun in the Federal Capital Territory, have arrested 139 suspected bandits, rescued 154 hostages, and recovered 604 ammunitions within two weeks.

Prominent among the successes recorded by the squad is the interception of a group of persons along the Abuja-Kaduna expressway who were suspected major suppliers of arms and ammunition to bandits operating in Niger, Zamfara, and Kaduna States.

Earlier on Friday, men of the IGP-SIS engaged some armed bandits within the FCT-Kaduna axis in a fierce gun battle and neutralised three bandits including their gang leader, one Mai-Gemu aka Gadoro.

The Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi made the development known in a statement on Friday night.

Adejobi said, “The recent launch of the Special Intervention Squad in the Federal Capital Territory by the Inspector-General of Police, Olukayode Egbetokun, has further bolstered the security architecture of the FCT leading to the arrest of 139 suspects, recovery of three GPR Chargers, two AK-47 rifles, one Type-06, four locally fabricated guns, one Berretta pistol, two Makarov pistols, four locally fabricated pump action guns, 504 pieces of AK-47 ammunition, 100 pieces of AA ammunition, as well as the rescue of 154 kidnapped victims unhurt.

“Prominent among the recent successes recorded is the interception of a group of persons along the Abuja-Kaduna expressway who were major suppliers of arms and ammunition to bandits operating in Niger, Zamfara, and Kaduna States. In a more recent event, in the early hours of Friday, January 26, 2024, men of the IGP-SIS engaged some armed bandits within the FCT-Kaduna axis in a fierce gun battle and neutralised 3 of them including their gang leader, one Mai-Gemu (aka Gadoro).

“It is crystal clear that with this operation, the gang and its camp have been destroyed. The IGP-SIS operatives on January 21, 2024, arrested two major gun-running kingpins who had been supplying locally fabricated arms and various types of ammunition to several assailants operating in the North-Central region of the country.

“The squad also arrested two kidnappers in the Jikwoyi area of the FCT and recovered several arms and ammunition from them after overwhelming the gang in a gun battle which also led to the rescue of their kidnapped victim.

“The Inspector-General of Police, while reiterating that the SIS will be launched beyond the FCT to other states across the country for effective security management in the country, has ordered the tactical deployment of several operatives of the IGP-SIS to areas within the FCT still grappling with security breaches to combat every form of criminality that might surface.”