IN a major breakthrough against banditry, operatives of the Zamfara State Police Command have arrested a suspected arms supplier alleged to be transporting a deadly consignment of weapons to criminal gangs terrorizing rural communities.
The Command’s spokesperson, SP Yazid Abubakar, disclosed in a statement shared with News Point Nigeria on Tuesday that the suspect, identified as Nasuru Dawan Jiya, was apprehended on September 15, 2025, by the Command’s Anti-Kidnapping Unit while on a routine patrol along the busy Gummi–Sokoto highway.
According to the statement, the operatives intercepted a Toyota Corolla vehicle ferrying passengers from Sokoto to Gummi. During a meticulous search of the car at Gambanda Godabe village in Gummi Local Government Area, the team made a shocking discovery:
“Upon conducting a thorough search of the vehicle, the team recovered the following items, concealed inside a bag of oranges belonging to one Nasuru Dawan Jiya: four AK-47 rifles, 200 rounds of live PKT ammunition, 28 rounds of live AK-47 ammunition, and four empty AK-47 magazines,” SP Abubakar said.
The statement added that the suspect immediately confessed during preliminary interrogation, admitting that he was on his way to deliver the weapons to a notorious gang of bandits operating in Gurusu village, a hotbed of criminal activity in the region.
SP Abubakar assured the public that investigations are already in progress to unravel the wider network behind the illegal arms trafficking.
“Efforts are ongoing to apprehend his collaborators, trace the source of the weapons, and dismantle the entire criminal syndicate supplying arms to bandits across Zamfara State,” the police spokesman said.
He emphasized that the arrest is a significant step towards curbing the supply chain that fuels rural banditry, cattle rustling, and kidnappings-for-ransom in the state.
The police command reiterated its unwavering resolve to flush out armed groups and restore peace to Zamfara communities, assuring residents that proactive measures including highway patrols, intelligence-led operations, and targeted raids on known bandit enclaves will continue.
“The Commissioner of Police calls on members of the public to continue to volunteer credible and timely information to the police to aid ongoing operations against criminal elements,” SP Abubakar concluded.
