Army commend vigilance group for arresting suspected Boko Haram members

The Nigerian Army on Thursday commended members of a vigilance group in Zurmi Local Government Area of Zamfara for apprehending some Boko Haram suspects in the area.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that three suspected members of the sect were recently trailed to the bush in the area by members of the group, which led to their arrest.

Speaking to NAN in Gusau on Friday, the Commanding Officer of the 223 Light Tank Battalion, Col. Adamu Abdullahi, described the security tactics of the group as “remarkable’’.

He said that security operatives, particularly the Army, had made several appeals to the public to always give useful information that could lead to the arrest of criminals in the state.

“This is definitely one of the results of such appeals and we do not want it to go unnoticed because only God knows how many lives this effort has saved.

“The commanding officer of 1 Division of the Nigerian Army, Kaduna, declared that even with the surrender of arms and ammunition by repentant armed bandits to the government, military operations will continue until we rid the state of all forms of criminals.

“I want to assure the public that the soldiers will continue to comb the bushes to arrest all other suspects,’’ he said.

The Emir of Zurmi, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku, who handed over the suspects to the army at his palace, said he got a report that the sect members were 11 in number and, therefore, expressed the need for the arrest of the rest of the insurgents still at large “ to give people in this area a peace of mind”.

NAN reports that the suspects were found to have hid their weapons, including AK 47 rifles and ammunition, in a load mounted on camel back.

All three suspects were immediately taken to 1 Division of the Nigerian Army, Kaduna.