Two women, suspected to be wives of kidnappers, have been arrested for allegedly transporting an AK-47 rifle and 31 rounds of live ammunition to their husbands inside a forest in Kwara State.
The suspects, Aisha Haruna, Rabi Umaru, and Fatimoh Abubakar, were apprehended at Babanla Motor Park following intelligence.
Commissioner of Police, Adekimi Ojo, disclosed this at a briefing over the weekend.
He stated that the women were in a suspicious vehicle when one of the passengers jumped out and fled into the bush upon sighting police operatives.
A search of the vehicle led to the recovery of the firearm and ammunition, which were hidden in one of the women’s bags.
The police boss explained that one of the suspects confessed she was given the weapon by one “Mai-Gowaye,” a male in Kaduna State, with instructions to deliver it to another individual known as “Saleh” inside the Baba-Sango forest, suspected to be a criminal hideout.
“Another suspect admitted she was heading to the forest to join her husband, a known member of a kidnap-for-ransom gang operating in the area,” Ojo added.
The fleeing woman, also said to be a kidnapper’s wife, is currently at large, while police have intensified surveillance in and around the forest to apprehend more suspects and dismantle the syndicate.
Meanwhile, the commissioner further disclosed that two suspects, Suleiman Jamiu and Mumini Mohammed, were arrested for being in possession of N11.3 million suspected to be proceeds from kidnapping ransoms in Share, Ifelodun Local Government Area.
Ojo assured the public that efforts would be intensified to maintain peace and security across the state.
