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Bandits Abduct 20 Women In Fresh Zamfara Attack
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Bandits have abducted at least 20 persons, mostly young girls and women in Moriki town, Zurmi Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
A resident of Moriki, Sufyanu Moriki, said that the victims were abducted on Saturday while fetching firewood on the outskirts of the town.
“The abduction actually happened on Saturday, they went out to fetch firewood at the outskirts of the town when they were kidnapped by the armed group.”
“They are yet to contact anyone to demand ransom.”
Police authorities in the state are yet to confirm the incident.
The Zamfara Police Command’s spokesperson, Yazid Abubakar, said he was yet to be informed about the incident and promised to revert when he gets the information.
“Banditry” crisis originated in conflict over land and water rights between herders and farmers but has morphed into organised crime, with gangs preying on rural communities that have long had little or no government presence.
The conflict is worsening a malnutrition crisis in the northwest as attacks drive people away from their farms, in a situation that has been complicated by climate change and western aid cuts.
Last month, bandits in Zamfara killed 33 people they had kidnapped in February despite receiving a $33,700 ransom, while three babies died in captivity, officials and residents told AFP.
Since 2011, as arms trafficking increased and the wider Sahel fell into turmoil, organised armed gangs formed in northwest Nigeria, with cattle rustling and kidnapping becoming huge moneymakers in the largely impoverished countryside.
Groups also levy taxes on farmers and artisanal miners.
Violence has spread in recent years from the northwest into north-central Nigeria.
Two weeks ago, Nigerian troops killed at least 95 members of an armed gang in a shootout and airstrikes in the northwest state of Niger.
But the military is overstretched. While improved cooperation between the army and air force has aided the fight, analysts say, airstrikes have also killed hundreds of civilians over the years.
Bandits, who are primarily motivated by money, have also increased their cooperation with Nigeria’s jihadist groups, who are waging a separate, 16-year-old armed insurrection in the northeast.
The recent emergence of the Lakurawa jihadist group in the northwest has worsened violence in the region.
Governments of affected states have been forced to recruit anti-jihadist militias fighting the militants in the northeast to assist in countering the bandits.
Suspected armed bandits have abducted the Chairman of Bungudu Local Government Area of Zamfara State, Hon. Nura Umar Abdullahi, killing four persons, including two policemen and two local vigilantes who attempted to foil the attack.
A family source said the gunmen invaded the chairman’s residence and took him, his mother, wife and two children away. The source, however, said the family members were later released, while the abductors moved away with the council chairman, a health worker from the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Gusau, and a Point of Sale (POS) operator.
The bandits reportedly engaged security personnel and local vigilantes in a gun battle while making their escape, leaving several people injured by stray bullets. Among those affected was a retired treasurer of the Zamfara State Ministry of Finance and elder brother to the abducted chairman, Bello Umar Abdullahi.
The chairman’s wife said the bandits informed them that their target was only the council boss and asked the family members to return home.
“They released us at a shallow distance into the bush,” she said.
Meanwhile, the Media Information Officer of the Joint Task Force Operation Fansan Yamma (OPFY), Northwest, Lt. Col. Aliyu Danja, said troops of the Nigerian Army successfully rescued the family members of the abducted chairman after a fierce gun battle with the bandits.
The Gombe State Police Command has handed over a Toyota Highlander to its rightful owner, Mrs. Cecilia A. Duru of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, nearly five years after the vehicle was stolen.
The SUV was presented to its owner on Friday after police concluded investigations that confirmed her ownership.
In a statement, the Police Public Relations Officer in Gombe, DSP Buhari Abdullahi, said the vehicle was recovered on June 8, 2026, by operatives of the State Intelligence Department, SID, in collaboration with officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC.
He said the SUV was intercepted during a routine vehicle data verification exercise at the Gombe State Internal Revenue Service Vehicle Licensing Office, where discrepancies in its registration documents raised suspicion.
According to the police, investigations revealed that the Toyota Highlander was stolen in Rivers State on September 17, 2021, before it was smuggled to the Republic of Niger in 2023.
The command said the vehicle later re-entered Nigeria through the Illela border in Sokoto State in October 2025. It was then sold in Kaduna State and eventually brought to Gombe for re-registration, leading to its recovery.
The police described the successful recovery and return of the vehicle as proof of the effectiveness of intelligence-led policing and inter-agency collaboration in combating vehicle theft and related crimes.
The command said efforts were ongoing to track down and prosecute those responsible for stealing and illegally transporting the vehicle across international borders.
It also advised prospective vehicle buyers to verify the authenticity of ownership documents before purchasing any vehicle, and urged members of the public to report suspicious transactions promptly to security agencies.
The Nigerian Navy has intensified its crackdown on crude oil theft, arresting a vessel allegedly involved in illegal oil bunkering and taking 12 crew members into custody during an intelligence-led operation in Akwa Ibom State.
The operation, conducted under Operation DELTA SENTINEL, saw naval personnel intercept the vessel, MT FILIA, at the UTUE Terminal while it was allegedly siphoning crude oil from an oil well terminal jacket.
Director of Naval Information, Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, said the successful operation followed credible intelligence generated through the Navy’s surveillance systems and continuous monitoring by its operational platforms.
He disclosed that preliminary investigations showed the vessel was carrying about 32.82 metric tonnes of fuel oil and 650 metric tonnes of crude oil without lawful authorisation or the required documentation.
According to him, the vessel, its 12 crew members and the recovered products have been taken into custody pending further investigation and possible prosecution.
Reacting to the development, the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Idi Abbas, praised the officers and ratings who carried out the operation, describing their professionalism and vigilance as commendable.
He reaffirmed the Navy’s determination to stamp out crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism and other maritime crimes that continue to undermine Nigeria’s economy.
The Naval Chief said Operation DELTA SENTINEL has continued to deliver measurable results through intelligence-driven operations, robust surveillance and collaboration with other security agencies and key stakeholders.
Folorunsho recalled that between April and June 2026, the Navy recovered more than 4.7 million litres of petroleum products, dismantled 58 illegal refining sites, destroyed 239 dugout pits and 13 refining ovens, and arrested 91 suspects linked to crude oil theft.
He added that the sustained operations coincided with Nigeria’s crude oil production rising to 1.89 million barrels per day in July 2026, surpassing the country’s OPEC production quota.
The Nigerian Navy assured Nigerians that it would sustain operations aimed at protecting the nation’s oil and gas assets and urged members of the public to continue providing credible information to support the fight against maritime crimes.
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