The Sokoto State Police Command has arrested suspected financiers of bandits as well as members of a motorcycle theft syndicate in two separate operations conducted on Wednesday in parts of Sokoto and Zamfara States.
The command’s Public Relations Officer, ASP Ahmed Rufai, said in a statement on Friday that three suspects were apprehended in Tangaza Local Government Area for allegedly sponsoring a notorious bandit group by facilitating the sale of rustled cattle.
He said one of the suspects, identified as Ruwa Ginyo, the Fulani head of Gidan-Madi, was arrested alongside two accomplices.
Rufai added that four rustled cows were recovered during the operation.
According to him, the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Ahmed Musa, described the suspects as part of the “financial engine room’’ that sustains bandit activities in the area.
Musa was quoted as saying that disrupting the funding channels of criminal groups represented a major operational breakthrough for the command.
He said a follow-up operation carried out by the Command’s Strike Force in Talata Mafara, Zamfara State, led to the arrest of several persons linked to a motorcycle theft and resale syndicate.
Two motorcycles earlier reported stolen in Sokoto were also recovered, he added.
Musa said the arrests demonstrated the Command’s extended operational capacity across state borders.
He warned criminals operating within and outside the state that the command would continue to track and arrest offenders regardless of their location.
The Commissioner urged residents, especially livestock and motorcycle dealers, to verify ownership documents before completing transactions and to promptly report suspicious movements to security agencies.