DSS smashes kidnap gangs, nabs Boko Haram IED specialist

The Department of State Services (DSS) yesterday said it
had smashed several kidnap gangs and terrorist
elements in recent operations across the country.
A statement from an official of DSS, Tony Opuiyo, said
on August 22, one Samuel Asuquo, a kidnap kingpin,
was arrested at Nasarawa Bakoko village in Cross River
State.
He said Asuquo was the mastermind of the kidnap of
three Australian staff of Lafarge Cement Company, for
which his gang received a ransom of N150million.
He added that on August 30, Bamaiyi Mustapha, Aminu
Isa and Hassan Shehu, members of a kidnap gang
operating around the Abuja-Kaduna axis, were arrested
in Lafia, Nasarawa State.
Opuiyo said the gang had earlier kidnapped five Igbo
women and collected N13million as ransom, noting that
they were arrested while planning a high profile kidnap
in Abuja.
Opuiyo said the service also carried out another
operation at Tamburawa village along Kano-Zaria
Expressway, Kano State, where Alhassan Musa and Ado
Yusuf, members of a kidnap/armed robbery syndicate
operating from Falgore forest in Doguwa LGA, Kano
State, were apprehended.
He also said in response to the regrouping of Boko
Haram elements in Kano State, the service in concert
with the military, apprehended two high profile members
of the sect: Ibrahim Ustaz Abubakar and Idris Audu.
He said Audu is an IED specialist, who “had already
perfected plans to seek recruitment into the Nigerian
Army before his arrest.”
He also said on August 26, two kidnappers, armed
robbers and assassins – Moses Achia and Fanen Igbetar
were arrested at Kperlegba Village in Katsina-Ala Local
Government Area of Benue State.
He said one AK-47 rifle, five fully loaded AK-47
magazines, 150 rounds of live ammunition and one
pistol loaded with 15 rounds of live ammunition were
recovered from them.
He said on September 3, a kidnap gang terrorizing
states in the South-east was busted by the service at
Aba in Abia State.
The gang masterminded kidnapping incidents, including
the abduction of Uche Ikonne, an American citizen.
He also said the service had arrested one Abbas
Mohammed at Asokoro, Abuja, after sending several
threat messages to the Ukranian Ambassador to Nigeria.
Opuiyo further said one Izuagie Mohammed was arrested
in Benin City, Edo State on 24th August, 2016, for
impersonating the Accountant General of the Federation.
He said Mohammed had already defrauded members of
the public posing as the Nigerian AGF on Facebook and
promising them Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)
empowerment loans.
He said on August 28,Taiye Alade and Ajoke Kolawole
were also arrested at Fabian Hotel, Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State.
The duo allegedly cloned the GSM number of the Group
Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum
Corporation, and were using it to defraud his associates.
Opuiyo said one Mike Ewugbara, an alleged child
trafficker, was arrested at Okigwe, Imo State on August
26, adding that three kidnapped children were rescued
from his hideout, including one Miracle who was
abducted in Benue State.