Troops bust syndicate supplying fuel to Ambazonia rebels in Taraba

Nigerian troops in Taraba State have apprehended members of a syndicate supplying fuel to Ambazonia rebels for terrorism activities.

In a statement issued on its verified Facebook page, the Army authority noted that success was achieved through actionable intelligence and extensive surveillance by troops of the Nigerian Army deployed for counterterrorism operations along the Nigeria-Cameroon border in Taraba State.

It said the troops have successfully intercepted and apprehended eight members of a syndicate that specialises in smuggling fuel from Nigeria to the Ambazonian rebels in the Republic of Cameroon to facilitate terrorists’ activities.

According to the post: “The sting operation took place on Friday, May 24, 2024, along the Abong-Kurmi Baissa Road in Taraba State, between Nigeria and Cameroon borders.

“The suspects, identified as Jafaru Adamu, 32, Auwal Haruna, 34, Umar Dahiru, Mubarak Abdullahi, 20, Saidu Musa, 26, Bashiru Ibrahim, 18, Danlami Yahuaza, 19, and Abubakar Abdullahi, 19, were caught en route to the border with a large quantity of fuel.”

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During preliminary investigations, the suspects allegedly confessed to smuggling and selling fuel to the Cameroonian Ambazonian rebels, who are prohibited from entering Nigeria to purchase the product directly.

The suspects revealed that they had previously bought fuel from Gassol and Bali local government areas at the rate of N950 per litre. However, they discovered that fuel was sold at N800 per litre in Takum LGA, prompting them to source for the product there.

At the time of their arrest, the suspects were travelling in three J5 vehicles, carrying 605 jerry cans, each with a capacity of 40 litres, totalling 24,200 litres of fuel. The fuel, valued at N800 per litre, amounts to N19,360,000.

According to the Nigerian Army: “Further investigation led to the identification of other members of the smuggling syndicate, including Alhaji Abdulmumini, Jafaru Adamu, Babilu Zubairu, Sule Abong, and Mark Akawu, who is reportedly the chairman of the syndicate based in Abong, a border community between Kurmi LGA of Taraba State and the Republic of Cameroon.”