Sokoto police arrest five for currency counterfeiting, recover AK-47

The Sokoto State Police Command has said that it arrested five suspected members of a counterfeit currency syndicate, recovered an AK-47 rifle and 180 sheep from suspected outlawed Yan Sakai members.

The command also disclosed that it has apprehended a man accused of impersonating a Mobile Police officer to snatch motorcycles.

The Command’s Police spokesman, DSP Ahmad Rufa’i, disclosed the development in a statement on Thursday, remarking that the arrests followed separate operations by the command’s Anti-Kidnapping Unit and divisional police teams across the state.

According to him, operatives first uncovered a sophisticated counterfeiting network known as “Sai Malam”, leading to the arrest of three suspects on March 5 in Illela Local Government Area.

The Divisional Police Officer in Illela transferred three suspects – Muhd Hamidu of Kwanni, Niger Republic; Umar Hassan; and Sadik Isah of Illela LGA – to the State Criminal Investigation Department for discreet investigation,” Rufa’i said.

He added that further intelligence led to the arrest of two additional suspects identified as Buhari Abubakar and Kasimu Muhd of Makera Asada area of Sokoto.

Items recovered from the suspects included counterfeit currencies and fetish materials believed to be used in the illicit operation.

In another operation on March 10, the Anti-Kidnapping Unit responded to a distress call over the presence of suspected outlawed Yan Sakai members in Dakalo village, Dange-Shuni Local Government Area.

Rufa’i said the gang, allegedly led by one Sani Nabuzuwa and linked to cattle rustling and culpable homicide, opened fire on police operatives upon sighting them.

The tactical team responded swiftly and overpowered the hoodlums, forcing them to flee into a nearby forest,” he said.

“The Police recovered a fabricated AK-47 rifle, a magazine loaded with 11 rounds of live ammunition, 180 sheep suspected to have been rustled, and a Kasea motorcycle from the scene.”

Meanwhile, operatives of the Arkilla Police Station have similarly revealed that its personnel arrested a suspect, Auwal Sani of Yabo Local Government Area, for allegedly impersonating a Mobile Police officer.

The Police said the suspect and an accomplice currently at large wore Mobile Police uniforms to deceive victims before snatching their motorcycles.

“The suspects arrested a commercial motorcyclist, Abubakar Mohd, claiming they were taking his Boxer motorcycle to the police station but later fled with the motorcycle,” the statement further disclosed.

The police added that the stolen motorcycle was recovered during investigation, while the suspect confessed to have used the same method to steal three other motorcycles, which he allegedly sold to a buyer in Kware Local Government Area.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Ahmed Musa, assured residents that the command would sustain its crackdown on criminal elements.

He urged members of the public to continue providing credible information to security agencies to enhance the fight against crime in the state.

Culled from punch