The Kwara State Police Command has arrested a suspected gun technician from Makurdi alleged to be repairing and supplying weapons to bandits terrorising parts of the state.
The command also confirmed the arrest of several alleged collaborators who have been supplying food, fuel, drugs and other essentials to bandit camps hidden in remote forests.
Commissioner of Police, Adekimi Ojo, disclosed this on Friday after the State Security Council meeting held at the Government House, Ilorin.
Ojo said intelligence gathered after the recent bandit attack in Eruku led to the breakthrough, revealing a supply network that has aided criminal elements operating around Ifelodun and other vulnerable areas.
According to the commissioner, the suspect from Makurdi confessed to servicing weapons used by bandits, a development he described as a major setback to ongoing counter-insurgency operations in the state.
“We have arrested a gun-fixing specialist and other collaborators who have been providing food, fuel and medicines to these criminals in their hideouts,” Ojo said.
“Their activities directly strengthened the operations of kidnappers and bandits across Kwara.”
He warned that the council had again raised concerns over the “damaging influence of social media” on security operations, particularly the circulation of sensitive information such as ransom discussions and deployment details.
“Spreading security reports carelessly puts our citizens at greater risk,” he noted. “Residents must apply restraint and verify before posting anything online.”
Ojo commended President Bola Tinubu for approving intensified military and police deployments, and praised the Inspector-General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, for sending four tactical squads — SWAT, IRT, SIS and STS — to reinforce operations against terrorists and kidnappers in the state.
He confirmed that recent air interdictions have already pushed bandits out of several hideouts, especially in Ifelodun axis, forcing them to abandon makeshift camps.
The council, he said, approved continuous joint patrols by security agencies ahead of the Yuletide season, and recommended sustained air bombardments of identified criminal enclaves.
“We are strengthening surveillance across vulnerable communities,” he said. “Residents should avoid night farming, unnecessary late outings and must promptly report suspicious individuals to the Police, DSS, local government authorities or traditional rulers.”
He added that efforts to track the perpetrators of the recent attacks and rescue abducted victims were ongoing.
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