Troops of the Nigerian military attached with Operation Hadin Kai have arrested 18 soldiers, 15 mobile policemen and 8 civilians, including a traditional ruler, for allegedly supplying arms and ammunition to non-state actors.
This is just as the Theatre Commander, Operation Hadin Kai, Abdulsalam Abubakar, a Major-General, accused foreign mercenaries of providing training for members of Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), terrorising the North East region of Nigeria.
The latest arrest and revelation came less than a week after Borno State Governor, Babagana Zulum, raised the alarm that some military officers and politicians are informants and collaborators for the terrorists, following the resurgence of attacks in the State.
Briefing Defence Correspondents on the activities of the Joint Task Force North-East operation from 2024 to 2025, who were on a fact-finding mission to the theatre of operation in Maiduguri, the Staff Officer Grade Two OPHK, Major Ademola Owolana, said a stringent measure is being put in place for culprits.
Owolana said the successes were recorded under Operation Snowball, which was launched in August 2024 to counter ammunition racketeering in the theatre, adding that the operation was being conducted across 11 States.
He listed Bauchi, Benue, Borno, Ebonyi, Enugu, Lagos, Plateau, Kaduna, Rivers, Taraba and the Federal Capital Territory as the States where some of the suspects were arrested while carrying out their nefarious activities.
“So far, a total of 18 soldiers, 15 mobile policemen and 8 civilians, including a traditional ruler, have been arrested.
“Preliminary findings from the ongoing investigation reveal community pressure on serving security personnel to supply arms and ammunition for communal conflicts as driving factors,” he said.
He emphasised that the “lucrative nature of trading in ammunition is also a driving factor for its persistence,” adding that the theatre also recorded significant progress in the fight against terrorists’ logistics suppliers and their collaborators.
The senior officer revealed that one Sgt. Ameh Raphael, an armourer of the 7 Division Garrison, who has been in the trade since 2018, and Sgt. Seidi Adamu of 3rd Division Ordnance Services, who has also been in the trade since 2022, had over N45 million and N34 million respectively in their accounts.
Owolana further disclosed that the investigation also revealed that a whopping sum of N135 million was discovered to have passed through the account of a policeman identified as Insp. Enoch Ngwa, who was arrested for arms racketeering.
“A few soldiers motivated by greed are involved in ammunition racketeering, deliberately diverting arms from the military stockpiles and supply chains to terrorists. Such actions erode battlefield morale, reduce troops’ effectiveness, and strengthen enemy resistance.
“The most recent incident occurred on 24th February this year when a soldier of 144 Battalion was arrested with 30 rounds of 7.62mm specials at Tashin-Karo, Kano by a military police K-19 on route search operations.
“Consequently, the theatre has continued to warn troops at all levels of the severe repercussions and sanctions of ammunition racketeering.
“Those found culpable have been dismissed and handed over to the police to serve as a deterrent,” he said.
Originally published in Daily Trust
