The Department of State Services (DSS) has re-arrested a wanted terror suspect, Abdulazeez Obadaki, one of the inmates who escaped during the July 2022 attack on the Kuje Correctional Centre in the Federal Capital Territory.
Obadaki, said to be a notorious terror operative, was among the over 800 inmates, including Boko Haram suspects, who fled the prison after insurgents overpowered security personnel during the invasion.
ThemomentNG understands that Obadaki had been on the DSS watchlist for his alleged role in several violent crimes carried out after the jailbreak.
According to the agency, the suspect “masterminded the attacks on banks in Uromi, Edo State, and the fatal shooting at Deeper Life College, Okene, in Kogi State, both in 2022.”
Naija News reports that the re-arrest came nearly three months after the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, announced the arrest of two men he identified as leaders of the Ansaru terrorist group.
Ribadu, speaking at a press briefing on security developments at the Office of the National Security Adviser in August, identified those arrested as Abu Baraa, the Amir, and Mahmuda, the deputy Amir.
He said, “The first is Mahmud Muhammad Usman (aka Abu Bara’a/Abbas/Mukhtar), the self-styled Emir of ANSARU. He is the coordinator of various terrorist sleeper cells across Nigeria.
“He is also the mastermind of several high-profile kidnappings and armed robberies used to finance terrorism over the years.
“The second is Mahmud al-Nigeri (aka Mallam Mamuda), Abu Bara’s proclaimed Chief of Staff and Deputy. He is the leader of the so-called “Mahmudawa” cell hiding out in and around the Kainji National Park, straddling Niger and Kwara States up to the Benin Republic.
“Mamuda trained in Libya between 2013 and 2015 under foreign jihadist instructors from Egypt, Tunisia, and Algeria, specialising in weapons handling and IED fabrication.”
He also disclosed that the two men had been on Nigeria’s most-wanted list for years, having jointly spearheaded multiple attacks on civilians, security forces, and critical infrastructure.
