The Zamfara State Police Command has arrested a 58-year-old Algerian national for allegedly trafficking arms across borders.
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The Commissioner of Police, Mr. Mohammed Dalijan, disclosed this on Tuesday in Gusau, revealing that the arrest followed weeks of intelligence-driven operations. “The command, acting on intelligence, traced and arrested an arms manufacturer in Jos and tracked and arrested a regional arms trafficker from Algeria at the Illela border point,” Dalijan said.
He added that the Algerian suspect, who confessed to engaging in arms trafficking for eight years, supplied weapons to bandits across northwestern states. “At the point of the arrest, four AK47s were recovered from him,” he stated.
The commissioner highlighted that the command had recovered a total of 16 AK47 rifles during various raids over the past three weeks. Additional recoveries included a double-barrel gun and a locally made pistol from a suspected arms manufacturer in Jos, Plateau State.
In addition to the arms trafficker, Dalijan said the police detained several suspects, including bandits and individuals supplying motorcycles used in criminal activities. “The police recovered live ammunition and N2.5 million cash, among others, from the suspects,” he noted.
The police also apprehended illegal gold miners and confiscated several mining excavators. Dalijan warned that the federal and state government ban on illegal mining remains in force and vowed to continue clamping down on offenders.
The commissioner reaffirmed the command’s commitment to tackling security challenges in the region through proactive measures and intelligence-led policing.
