Troops of the Nigerian Army have reportedly killed a notorious bandit kingpin, Kachalla Na Faranshi, and scores of his fighters.
The bandits were killed during a raid of forests in Zurmi Local Government Area of Zamfara state.
This was made known by Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency expert focused on the Lake Chad region, in a post on his X handle.
Makama disclosed that Na Faranshi was killed during an encounter with troops of Operation Fansan Yamma.
The security expert quoted intelligence sources as saying that the bandit leader, originally from Shirgi village in Maradi, Niger Republic, had been involved in arms smuggling and organised crime.
Makama further stated that the bandit kingpin had ties with terrorist groups operating in Mali and was once an ally of Bello Turji, another notorious terrorist, before establishing his criminal network.
“He was known for smuggling illicit firearms from Mali and Niger, supplying weapons to various armed groups operating in Nigeria’s northwestern forests,” Makama said.
