Operatives of the State Security Service (SSS) on Sunday apprehended two high-profile suspected kidnappers as they attempted to depart Nigeria for Saudi Arabia to observe the holy pilgrimage.
Security sources revealed that the suspects had been on the SSS’s radar for over a year. The chance for their capture came during routine screening at various Hajj camps across the country.
According to the sources, SSS operatives successfully arrested the suspects, identified as Yahaya Yakubu and Sani Aliyu Galadi, at the Abuja and Sokoto Hajj camps respectively.
Yakubu, a suspected kidnap kingpin residing in Paikon-Kore village in Gwagwalada area council of the Federal Capital Territory, was detained at the Abuja Hajj camp. Galadi, also known as Mai Boxer, was arrested nearly 750 kilometres away in Sokoto, where he had travelled to participate in the pilgrimage.
Both men had been under surveillance for their alleged roles in orchestrating kidnappings and attacks by bandits in the Sokoto-Zamfara region. Despite being aware of the SSS’s ongoing investigations, they appeared oblivious to the agency’s monitoring efforts.
One of the sources described how Yakubu was detained after presenting his passport to the authorities alongside other Muslim travelers at the Abuja Hajj camp. “It was during the screening process at the camp that SSS operatives identified him and swiftly arrested him,” the source said.
In Sokoto, Galadi’s arrest was equally swift. An official at the Muslim Pilgrims Welfare Board, who requested anonymity, confirmed both arrests, adding that Galadi had since been transported to the SSS headquarters in Abuja for further questioning.
The SSS had previously detained Abubakar Aliyu, another suspected bandit and kidnapper, under similar circumstances last year.
The two suspects, Yakubu and Aliyu, are currently in custody while investigations continue.
This arrest highlights the continued vigilance of the State Security Service in ensuring that individuals with criminal backgrounds do not exploit the Hajj pilgrimage for their own purposes. The SSS’s intervention at Hajj camps remains a significant strategy in combating organized crime in Nigeria.
