Community leaders in Katsina and Nasarawa states have commended the Department of State Services (DSS) for disrupting an alleged arms trafficking network suspected of supplying ammunition to terrorist groups operating across parts of the North.
The commendation followed the arrest of Abubakar Mubarak, an alleged arms trafficking kingpin, identified as 28-year-old by DSS operatives in Magabar Jibia, Jibia Local Government Area of Katsina State, on Tuesday.
The arrest, according to community leaders who spoke separately with newsmen, was linked to the earlier apprehension of Ismail Lawalli, an alleged arms courier, along the Keffi-Abuja Highway in Nasarawa State.
The leaders, who declined to disclose their identities because of security concerns, said the arrests had exposed a wider network allegedly involved in the movement and supply of firearms and ammunition to terrorist elements across several northern states.
Mubarak, according to the sources, is a native of Mashema Village in Zurmi Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
A community leader in Jibia LGA said the arrest had brought a measure of relief to residents who had endured repeated attacks and insecurity allegedly associated with criminal networks operating in the area.
‘We are very relieved and thankful to the DSS for arresting Mubarak. Many villagers are aware of the terror his men have been unleashing on us over the years,’ the leader said.
The leader added that residents were hopeful that the arrest would help security agencies uncover other members of the alleged network and prevent further movement of weapons into vulnerable communities.
‘We are, however, thankful that the Almighty Allah has used the DSS to bring their reign of terror to an end,’ he added.
In Nasarawa State, another community leader in Keffi described the arrest of Lawalli as a major breakthrough in efforts to disrupt the supply chain through which ammunition allegedly reaches criminal and terrorist groups.
The source, a retired security agent, said DSS operatives arrested Lawalli on Sunday evening along the Keffi-Abuja Highway and recovered a large quantity of ammunition from him.
According to him, the items recovered included 1,099 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition, 57 rounds of 5.56mm ammunition and 106 rounds of General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) ammunition.
He said preliminary interrogation of the suspect allegedly linked the seized ammunition to Mubarak, who was said to have paid for its transportation. The alleged confession, according to the community leader, enabled DSS operatives to trace the suspected recipient and subsequently arrest Mubarak in Katsina State.
The development, he said, demonstrated the importance of intelligence-led operations and the need for security agencies to target not only armed groups in remote locations but also the logistics and supply networks that sustain their activities.
The source further disclosed that Mubarak’s elder brother, Mustapha Abubakar, had also been arrested earlier this year in Gusau, Zamfara State, over an alleged arms trafficking offence.
‘Mustapha Abubakar was arrested by DSS operatives earlier this year at Gusau, with one AK-47 rifle and 20 rounds of ammunition,’ he said.
He said the arrest of the two brothers, alongside the apprehension of Lawalli, could provide security agencies with valuable leads into the structure, financing and operational routes of the alleged arms trafficking network.
The community leader expressed optimism that continued intelligence gathering and cooperation among security agencies would help prevent illicit weapons from reaching terrorist and criminal groups.
‘The suspects are currently in custody of the DSS for further investigation. Like in similar instances, they will be prosecuted by the agency,’ he said.
He commended the DSS for what he described as its sustained efforts to identify and dismantle illicit arms supply chains fueling insecurity in the country.
‘I commend the DSS for being unrelenting in its resolve to track and dismantle illicit arms supply networks, and other actors who fuel insecurity across the country.
‘We hope that with the combined efforts of other security agencies, insecurity would soon be a thing of the past,’ he added.