36-Year-Old Arrested In Kwara While Delivering Supplies To Bandits

A 36-year-old man identified as Yaman Patigi has been arrested in Patigi town, the headquarters of Patigi Local Government Area of Kwara State, while allegedly on his way to deliver food items, drugs, and drinks to bandits operating in the region.

Authorities apprehended the suspect on Friday. According to reports, he has since been handed over to operatives of the Department of State Security (DSS) in Ilorin, the state capital, for further investigation.

Items recovered from the suspect included hard drugs, alcoholic beverages, packets of cigarettes, and foodstuffs reportedly meant for delivery to the bandits in their hideouts.

Several communities in Patigi, Edu, and Ifelodun local government areas have been grappling with relentless attacks by armed groups, resulting in loss of lives, destruction of properties, and the displacement of residents seeking refuge in safer locations.

Just days earlier, unconfirmed accounts indicated that at least seven local vigilantes were killed in an ambush by bandits in Lata Nna community, Patigi LGA, while returning from a clearance operation. Their bodies were later recovered by another team conducting a similar mission in the area.

Reacting to the persistent insecurity, Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq recently convened a meeting with stakeholders from the affected communities to strategize on expelling the bandits from forest hideouts.

A resident of Patigi, speaking to journalists in Ilorin on Sunday, described the situation as devastating, saying it had thrown the entire community into chaos and fear.

Meanwhile, security sources hinted that the Nigerian Army is finalizing plans to launch sustained operations to rid the troubled local government areas of the criminal elements.

The development underscores growing concern over the spread of banditry from the North-West into other parts of the country, with local leaders and residents calling for urgent and robust security interventions.