By Ayo Kehinde
The Niger State Police Command has arrested a 35-year-old woman, Zuwaira Usman, of Pandogari in Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State, for allegedly transporting ammunition to bandits and other criminal elements operating within and outside the state.
The arrest followed actionable intelligence linking the suspect to criminal gangs.
The Police Public Relations Officer, SP Wasiu Abiodun, said Usman confessed to the crime during interrogation, admitting she acted as a courier for one Lawali of Birnin Gwari, Kaduna State.
According to the police, the suspect disclosed that she met Lawali in Birnin Gwari in September 2025, where they exchanged phone numbers. She said Lawali later instructed her to travel to Warri, Delta State, to collect a package on his behalf, giving her N20,000 as transport fare.
Usman narrated that upon arrival in Warri, she met a man identified as Ahmed, who handed her a sack containing a flask. Ahmed allegedly gave her an additional N30,000 for her return journey. She said she travelled back through Abuja to Kaduna and proceeded to Birnin Gwari, where she delivered the package.
The suspect claimed that it was at the point of delivery in Birnin Gwari that she discovered the flask contained 2,500 rounds of AK-47 ammunition.
SP Abiodun disclosed that the said Ahmed has been intercepted and arrested in Delta State, while efforts are ongoing to arrest Lawali as investigations are intensified.
In another development, the police also arrested a suspected serial child kidnapper in Kontagora, headquarters of Kontagora Local Government Area of the state.
The suspect, identified as 25-year-old Aminu Ahmed, was apprehended based on technical intelligence linking him to the abduction of at least three children and the collection of ransom payments totalling over N2 million.
The police said investigations revealed that in January 2025, the suspect abducted a three-year-old boy in the Samaru area of Kontagora and travelled with the child to Lagos, where he held him for four days. He allegedly demanded N10 million ransom from the child’s father and later received N1.4 million through different Point-of-Sale (POS) transactions before abandoning the child near a radio station in Kontagora.
The suspect further confessed that in May 2025, he abducted another four-year-old boy within Kontagora, took him to Lagos, and after three days demanded N10 million ransom. He reportedly received N500,000 before abandoning the child in Mashegu Local Government Area and later informing the parents where to retrieve the victim.
Police investigations also uncovered that in November 2025, the suspect abducted a three-year-old boy from the Government Reserved Area (GRA) in Kontagora, took him to Ilorin, Kwara State, and demanded N5 million ransom. He allegedly received N350,000 before dropping the child in Kaboji, Mashegu Local Government Area.
The police added that the suspect claimed he lost over N1.8 million in proceeds of the crimes in a failed mining investment.
SP Abiodun said investigations into the cases are ongoing, assuring that the command remains committed to dismantling criminal networks and bringing all suspects to justice.
