Zamfara Governor Commends DSS as Security Forces Intercept Arms Smuggled from Niger Republic
Zamfara State Governor, Alhaji Dauda Lawal, has lauded the Department of State Services (DSS) for its intelligence-sharing efforts that led to the interception of a large cache of arms and ammunition smuggled from Niger Republic.
The operation, conducted on January 27, 2025, was based on actionable intelligence and executed jointly by the DSS and troops of Operation Fasan Yamma. This was disclosed in a statement on Tuesday by the Coordinator, Joint Media Centre, Operation Fasan Yamma, Lt. Col. Abubakar Abdullahi.
Governor Lawal, during an inspection of the seized weapons in Gusau on Tuesday night, commended the DSS and the Nigerian Armed Forces for their swift action in neutralizing the threat. He also expressed gratitude to President Bola Tinubu for his support of security agencies, which he credited for the success of the operation.
“This operation is a testament to the efficiency of our security agencies. I want to sincerely commend the DSS for its proactive intelligence-sharing, which led to this major breakthrough,” Lawal said.
The operation targeted a notorious arms courier, Abubakar Umar, also known as Dangada. Security sources revealed that Umar had been tracked from Niger Republic to the Kaura Namoda-Zurmi Road, where he intended to deliver the weapons to bandit leaders operating in Birnin Magaji Local Government Area.
DSS intelligence indicated that the arms were meant for high-profile bandit kingpins, including Kachallah Atta, Alhaji Shinge, Alhaji Nashama, and a certain Zaki.
The traffickers, upon realizing they had been ambushed, abandoned a red Abuja-registered Volkswagen Golf station wagon (RBC 731 GU) and fled with serious bullet wounds. A search of the vehicle uncovered a deadly cache of weapons, including:
Seven AK-47 rifles
Two PKT General-Purpose Machine Guns (GPMG)
Two AK-103 rifles
169 rounds of 7.62x39mm ammunition
Nine PKT rounds of ammunition with one chain
13 empty magazines
Governor Lawal reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to working with security agencies to combat terrorism and crime in the state.
“This is a strong message to all those fueling insecurity in our state: we will not relent until peace is fully restored. I assure our security agencies of my government’s full support in this fight,” he declared.
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