Saturday, January 10, 2026 - The Gombe State Police Command has arrested four suspects and recovered a large number of stolen livestock in coordinated operations carried out on Thursday.
In a statement issued on Friday, the state Police Public
Relations Officer, Buhari Abdullahi, said the arrests followed actionable
intelligence and close collaboration between the police, local vigilante groups
and hunters.
According to the statement, the first arrest was made at
about 12:30 p.m. when police operatives, working with a vigilante group known
as Kungiyan Fulako, arrested a 17-year-old suspect, Adamu Lawali, at Dasa
Village via Jagali North in Yamaltu-Deba Local Government Area.
“The suspect was found in possession of 49 goats reasonably
suspected to be stolen. Sixteen of the goats were immediately identified by
their rightful owner at the point of arrest, while two other suspects managed
to escape,” the police said.
Abdullahi added that the suspect and the remaining exhibits
were currently in police custody as investigations continued.
In a similar operation later the same day at about 8:45
p.m., police officers and local hunters arrested a 16-year-old suspect, Abdu
Habu, at Ruwan Gizo Village via Jigawan Iro. Another suspect identified as Bode
was said to be at large.
“The suspect was found with 115 sheep and one donkey
suspected to be stolen. Subsequent identification confirmed that 23 of the
sheep belonged to victims from Garin Bako Village in Kaltungo Local Government
Area,” the statement said.
The police further disclosed that at about 2:00 p.m. on the
same day, detectives from the Command Monitoring Unit intercepted a 22-year-old
suspect, Amir Sulaiman, popularly known as Al’amin, at the Gombe Cattle Market.
“He was found in possession of two cows suspected to be
stolen and could not give a satisfactory account of ownership. During
interrogation, he confessed that he received the animals from his accomplice,
identified as Joda, who is currently at large,” Abdullahi stated.
He said efforts were ongoing to trace the rightful owners of
the cows and arrest the fleeing accomplice.
In another development, at about 10:30 p.m., a 13-year-old
suspect, Shuaibu Adamu, was arrested by hunters and handed over to the
Dadin-Kowa Divisional Police Headquarters after being found in possession of
159 sheep and five goats at Garin Shanu Village via Jigawan Iro in Yamaltu-Deba
Local Government Area.
“Thirty of the recovered sheep were later identified by a
60-year-old victim from Garin Waziri Village in Yamaltu-Deba Local Government
Area,” the police said.
Commending the role of local security groups, the
Commissioner of Police, Umar Chuso, praised the vigilance and cooperation of
vigilante groups and hunters across the state.
“The Command remains fully committed to tackling cattle
rustling and all forms of criminality in Gombe State. We commend the support of
local vigilantes and hunters, whose timely information has continued to yield
positive results,” Chuso said.
He urged members of the public to sustain cooperation with
the police by providing credible and timely information, assuring that all
suspects would be thoroughly investigated and prosecuted in accordance with the
law.
“The police will not relent in protecting lives and
property. Further developments will be communicated as investigations
progress,” the commissioner added
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