Nigerian police arrest kidnappers of US citizens rescued by US forces

Two members of the transnational kidnapping union involved in the kidnapping of US citizen Philip Nathan Walton on October 28, 2020 at his farm in Masalata village, Republic of Niger, were arrested by police officers.

We will remind, on Saturday, October 31, American troops rescued 27-year-old Walton after he was taken hostage by militants in the Republic of Niger and held in northern Nigeria.

DSP Force spokesman Frank Mba, who confirmed the latest event in a statement on Thursday, December 10, said the suspects: Aliya Abdullahi, 21, aka Mallam, and Aliya Umar, 23, aka Quatte Kusu, both from Sokoto State, were detained November 25, 2020.

“Two suspects – members of a 15-person kidnapping gang of Nigerian-Nigerian origin, led by Bart Dan Alhaji and Dan Buda were arrested as a result of a special operation led by intelligence, aimed at arresting a criminal group, disrupting and suppressing other criminal activities on their part,” said in a statement.

An investigation by the Intelligence Response Team showed that the gang plotted further kidnappings in order to avenge the deaths of their cohorts: 4 Nigerians and 2 Nigerians who died during the rescue operations.

The MBA said Force is working with its Nigerian counterpart to investigate the arrest of other transnational union members currently at large.

Meanwhile, in an effort to tackle transnational crime, Inspector General of Police, IGP MA Adamu, NPM, mni is working with other members of the West African Police Chiefs Organization (WAPCO) to deepen intelligence sharing between security agencies in the ECOWAS subregion and enhance security. along the international borders of member states. The suspects will be brought to court after the investigation is completed. “