DSS Arrests Two Foreigners, Three Nigerians Over Weapons Supply To Gunmen Behind Niger School Kidnapping

THE Department of State Services (DSS) has arrested five suspected arms couriers, including two foreigners from the Niger Republic over their alleged involvement in supplying weapons used in the mass abduction of students and staff of St. Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, Niger State, in November last year.
The suspects, including Yusuf Mohammed, also known as Bature, described as a suspected member of Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (Boko Haram), and his associate, Mubarak Ibrahim, were reportedly arrested during operations that uncovered an alleged arms supply network moving weapons to armed groups operating across parts of northern Nigeria.
The two were reportedly intercepted along the Zaria-Kaduna Highway while heading to receive a weapons consignment meant for insurgent commanders.
Further operations led to the arrest of Goni Ibrahim, described as an international arms courier from the Diffa region of Niger Republic, alongside an accomplice, Tukur Sani.
During a search of a blue vehicle allegedly used by the suspects, operatives reportedly recovered a cache of weapons, including 15 AK-103 assault rifles, 15 magazines and 1,434 rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition concealed inside the vehicle.
Days later, DSS operatives also reportedly arrested another suspected member of the syndicate, Alhaji Adamu, also known as Gado Banufe, in Yauri, Kebbi State, accused of supplying weapons to criminal groups operating in the Kebbi axis and surrounding areas.
A source said preliminary investigations linked the five suspects to arms supply and logistics support for gunmen who attacked St. Mary’s Catholic Primary and Secondary Boarding School in Papiri, Niger State on November 21, 2025 by heavily armed men on motorcycles.
About 50 students escaped during the chaos, while over 250 others were taken into the Kainji Lake Reserve Forest, where they were reportedly held for weeks.
The Federal and Niger State Governoments on December 21, announced the rescue and safe return of the remaining abducted students, saying all captives had been accounted for.