Troops of the Nigerian Army, in collaboration with operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), have arrested a suspected kidnap kingpin and recovered four AK-47 rifles and other weapons from a forest hideout in Enugu State.
The suspect was arrested during a coordinated, intelligence-led operation in the Gariki General Area of the state, as part of efforts to dismantle a criminal syndicate linked to the abduction of two persons in Udi Local Government Area on August 2.
The spokesperson for the 82 Division, Nigerian Army, Lt.-Col. Olabisi Olalekan, disclosed this in a statement on Monday.
Olalekan said the arrest followed an earlier operation in which troops neutralised one member of the syndicate and apprehended another suspect.
He said intelligence obtained from the arrested suspect enabled the security forces to identify the fleeing commander of the syndicate and locate the group’s concealed arms cache.
“The arrest followed an earlier operation in which troops neutralised one member of the syndicate and apprehended another.
“Subsequent exploitation of the arrested suspect yielded critical intelligence that led to the identification of the fleeing syndicate commander and the location of the group’s concealed arms cache,” he said.
According to him, troops acted swiftly on the intelligence, intensifying the manhunt until the suspected kingpin was tracked, intercepted and arrested while attempting to flee Enugu State.
Although the Army spokesperson did not disclose the identity of the suspect, he said preliminary investigations indicated that he was linked to several kidnapping activities across the South-East and North-Central regions.
Items recovered from the suspect included $1,000, N785,900 in cash and other incriminating materials.
He said further exploitation of intelligence obtained from the suspects led troops to Umuchingu Ujenike Forest, where members of the syndicate had concealed their weapons.
“During the follow-up operation, troops successfully recovered four AK-47 rifles, seven AK-47 magazines and 133 rounds of 7.62mm Special ammunition from the forest hideout,” he said.
Olalekan said the operation demonstrated the effectiveness of intelligence-driven joint operations in disrupting organised criminal networks, apprehending fleeing suspects and denying criminal elements access to weapons and safe havens.
He said the suspected kingpin was undergoing further interrogation to facilitate follow-up operations aimed at apprehending other members of the criminal network and their collaborators.
The Army spokesperson assured that the Joint Task Force, Operation UDO KA, and other security agencies would sustain intelligence-led operations against criminal elements across the South-East.
