Metro
Bandits kill ‘five police officers, three vigilantes’ in Zamfara
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Gunmen from criminal gangs on Thursday killed eight security personnel in northwest Nigeria’s Zamfara state, the state governor and police said.
Zamfara is one of several states in northwestern and central Nigeria that have for years been terrorized by criminal gangs known as “bandits” who steal cattle, raid villages, kidnap and kill residents and loot and burn homes.
The gangs maintain camps in a vast forest straddling Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna, Sokoto, Kebbi and Niger states from where they launch attacks on communities.
A group of bandits opened fire on a convoy of security personnel patrolling a highway linking Zamfara and neighbouring Katsina state around 1200 GMT.
“I just received sad news of the death of eight security men, comprising policemen and the Community Protection Guards (government-backed militia) who were ambushed and killed by bandits along Gusau-Funtuwa road”, Dauda Lawal Dare, Zamfara state governor said on Facebook.
A statement from the police in Zamfara confirmed “five gallant police officers paid the supreme price in the line of duty” when they were “ambushed” by several armed bandits while on routine patrol.
Their statement made no reference to the three militia also killed in the attack.
The security forces engaged the attackers in a shootout in which several of the bandits were “neutralized” while others fled, it said.
Bandits regularly set up barricades along highways, open fire on vehicles, and kill or kidnap travelers for ransom, prompting patrols by security personnel.
Since 2015 soldiers have been deployed to fight the criminal gangs in Zamfara but attacks have persisted. A government amnesty and cash incentives have failed to end the violence.
Communities in Kaduna and Katsina states have been making peace deals with bandits, but security analysts caution the gangs may only be creating safe havens from which they can continue their attacks.
Although the gangs are motivated primarily by financial gain, their increasing cooperation with jihadists waging an armed insurrection in the northeast has caused concern among officials and security analysts.
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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