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How Bandits Migrated From Niger Republic Into Kwara, Niger Forests And How Police Blocked Their Escape –Investigation
The forests served both as operational bases and as escape routes, allowing the bandits to strike and retreat with relative ease.....TAP TO CONTINUE READING
A SaharaReporters investigation has exposed how a network of armed bandits, linked to terrorism, kidnapping, armed robbery, and cattle rustling, migrated from the Republic of Niger and Nigeria’s North-West into the forests of Kwara and Niger states, setting up fortified criminal enclaves that now serve as hubs for violent operations across several regions.
Intelligence gathered by security agencies indicates that the group settled primarily in and around Gbubu Forest in Lafiagi Local Government Area of Kwara State.
From these hideouts, they allegedly planned and executed attacks on schools, business owners, expatriates, and wealthy individuals, spreading fear and instability across Katsina, Zamfara, Kwara, and Niger States.
The forests served both as operational bases and as escape routes, allowing the bandits to strike and retreat with relative ease.
Security sources disclosed that intensified military and police operations against bandit camps in recent months placed the group under significant pressure.
As these joint assaults tightened, the bandits reportedly attempted a coordinated escape from Gbubu Forest, hoping to evade arrest by crossing into Niger State.
Their movements, however, were detected through actionable intelligence, enabling security forces to move swiftly.
Operatives of the Nigeria Police Force Intelligence Response Team (IRT) stationed in Kwara State intercepted the fleeing suspects and arrested seven individuals before they could complete their escape.
Those arrested included Dahiru Adams, 50, of Sambe Village, Kankara LGA, Katsina State; Adamu Mohammad, also known as Baushe or Dogo, 58, from Gurbi Village, Jibia LGA, Katsina State; Abdullahi Abubakar, also known as Bature,35, from Jibia LGA, Katsina State; Abubakar Abdullahi, also known as Turke, 35, a native of Maradi in the Republic of Niger; Mohammadu Lawai, also known as Jalil, 40, also from Maradi, Republic of Niger; Zubairu Abubakar, 35, likewise from the Republic of Niger; and Shaibu Usman, 35, from Bura Village, Ningi LGA of Bauchi State.
At the time of their arrest, all the suspects were residing within the Gbubu Forest.
According to SaharaReporters investigators, the suspects confessed during interrogation to belonging to various armed bandit syndicates operating across Kwara and Niger states.
They reportedly admitted involvement in kidnapping for ransom, armed robbery, extortion, cattle rustling, and violent raids, using forest hideouts as staging grounds.
The suspects also described coordinated movements between multiple forest bases, cross-border routes, and local collaborators who allegedly provided supplies, logistics, and intelligence on potential targets.
The presence of multiple suspects from the Republic of Niger has once again highlighted the challenge of Nigeria’s porous borders and the ease with which armed groups move across them.
Security analysts warn that without sustained, intelligence-driven operations and meaningful inter-agency cooperation, the forest corridors linking Nigeria’s North-West to the North-Central region will continue to provide safe havens for criminal groups.
Authorities say investigations remain ongoing to uncover additional camps, financiers, and collaborators linked to the arrested suspects.
Security sources indicate that further arrests are expected as pressure increases on remaining networks operating in the region.
While the arrests mark a tactical breakthrough, residents and civil society organisations continue to question how such networks were able to embed themselves in forest reserves for long periods without detection, and whether systemic and institutional failures enabled these criminal enterprises to thrive under the shadow of official security structures.
According to our findings, former presidential candidate Rabiu Kwankwaso has stirred fresh national conversations after praising General Theophilus Danjuma in a way many say captures the retired general’s true influence on Nigeria. In a message marking Danjuma’s 87th birthday, Kwankwaso described him as a man who didn’t just serve long, but served with....TAP TO CONTINUE READING
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BREAKING NEWS: Newly Elected President of AGN, Abubakar Yakubu Arrested in Lagos – FULL DETAILS
The newly elected President of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Abubakar Yakubu, who won the election by a narrow margin of 116 votes to 113 against Rita Daniels, with three votes declared invalid, has reportedly been involved in a fatal motor accident in Surulere, Lagos.....TAP TO CONTINUE READING
Preliminary reports indicate that the crash resulted in the death of an individual.
Yakubu has been taken into police custody at the Barracks Police Station in Surulere, where investigations into the circumstances surrounding the accident are ongoing.
Authorities are yet to issue an official statement on the cause of the crash or the progress of the investigation.
Further details will follow as the news develops…
Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State officially defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) on Tuesday, a strategic move reportedly executed to pre-empt his estranged predecessor, Nyesom Wike, and take control of the APC structure in the oil-rich state.....TAP TO CONTINUE READING
The defection, which Fubara lannounced at a stakeholders’ meeting in Port Harcourt, was confirmed to be a calculated political maneuver following his closed-door meeting with President Bola Tinubu in Abuja on Monday.
Governor Fubara, while announcing his defection, publicly acknowledged President Tinubu’s intervention as the sole reason he survived the political turmoil, which saw his government briefly suspended.
He said: “I know you have been waiting to hear from me. I have to arrange this meeting so urgently. I know it will end on a good note
“You are aware that I went to see Mr President yesterday, and the reason I went for that visit is not just personal, but a state interest consultation.
“I don’t want to make any mistakes this time around. I also don’t want to step on any landmine that anyone is laying for us. So I was with Mr President yesterday to brief him on the situation of things in our state, which I believe he has taken note of, and he is going to act swiftly on it.
“The most interesting part of the meeting is what you all have been waiting for, and you have been asking me, the signal has finally arrived.
“We have the full support and the positive nod to leave where we are because we didn’t get any protection, to go to where the reason we are still standing is because of that place.
“The truth is, without Mr. President, there won’t be any His Excellency Sir Siminalayi Fubara; it would have been the former governor.
“So, we have every reason. Let no one be fooled in this State, we have the people and the supporters as well as the numbers. Our only thank you to Mr. President is to support him. We can’t support Mr. President in isolation, and we can’t show that support if we don’t fully identify with him, not backyard support.
“So, we have taken that decision today, since we have got the pass. Everyone here who has followed and suffered with me, our decision today, we are all moving to APC.“
Sources in Governor Fubara’s camp revealed to The Whistler that the defection was based on counsel from political strategists who urged him to join the APC before Wike, despite the FCT Minister’s alignment with the federal ruling party.
The main objective was to secure control of the APC’s political structure in Rivers State ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The strategy banked on Wike’s ongoing internal battles within the PDP, which reportedly led to him being isolated and without access to President Bola Tinubu for the last two months.
The source said Fubara was initially reluctant to make the move, concerned that it would be viewed as disrespectful to Wike and re-ignite the crisis that had just been resolved.
“The governor was reluctant at first. He felt it would be disrespectful to join the APC before his former boss and political benefactor. He was also concerned about reigniting the crisis that had just been resolved. He didn’t want to be seen as betraying Wike or repeating the same pattern that caused their problems in the first place,” the source told The Whistler.
The source explained: “Governor Fubara agreed with the calculation to join the APC first. They (his advisers) convinced him that this was the best way to secure his political future.”
Fubara’s camp asserts that his supporters and loyalists across the state are expected to follow his lead, effectively positioning him as the new leader of the APC in Rivers State.
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