The Sokoto State Police Command has recorded major breakthroughs in its fight against drug trafficking and banditry after arresting a suspected dealer, seizing illicit drugs, and recovering stolen livestock.
On May 27, officers from the Bado Division stopped two men riding an unregistered motorcycle along the Kebbi–Sokoto Road during a routine operation. Police spokesperson DSP Ahmad Rufai said the suspects, Ummaru Abubakar Gugare and another man identified only as Ummaru, were searched and found with a sack of substances suspected to be cannabis and several containers of controlled drugs, including Axzol, Benthexol, and D5 tablets.
Gugare was arrested at the scene while the second suspect escaped. Police said efforts are ongoing to track him down.
In a separate operation on May 30, the command’s Anti-Kidnapping Unit responded to reports of an attack by armed bandits on Zabori, Tambaranga, and Gidan Yero communities in Wamakko Local Government Area. The operatives blocked the attackers’ escape route near Abdalo Forest in Gwadabawa LGA, leading to a gunfight. The bandits fled into the forest after being overpowered, with some believed to have sustained gunshot wounds.
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During the operation, police arrested one suspect, Musa Usman from Damba Village in Illela LGA, and recovered 11 cows and five sheep believed to have been stolen. The animals are being held until they can be returned to their owners.
Sokoto State Commissioner of Police Hayatu Hassan Shaffa described the operations as “significant blows to criminal cartels operating in our state, whether drug barons or armed bandits.” He urged residents to continue providing useful information to security agencies, saying that collective effort would dismantle every criminal network threatening peace and security.
Investigations are ongoing, and the command said efforts have been intensified to arrest other suspects who escaped during the operations.
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