Delta Police have arrested a suspected weapons supplier linked to bandits and violent crimes nationwide.
Officers recovered large ammunition and say more arrests will follow as investigations continue.
The Delta State Police Command has arrested a suspected major supplier of weapons to bandit groups operating in the northern part of the country.
The suspect, 31-year-old Ahmed Ibrahim from Ekpan in Uvwie Local Government Area, had allegedly been involved in several kidnapping and armed robbery cases and was already under police watch.
Police spokesperson Bright Edafe said the arrest followed credible intelligence from the Force Technical Intelligence Unit in Abuja. He explained that operatives attached to the Commissioner of Police Special Assignment Team first tracked down a woman, identified as Jamila Abubakar, at a filling station along the Warri Patani Road.
According to the police, the officers found ₦550,000 hidden under her bag, suspected to be money linked to criminal activity. Her arrest led investigators to Ibrahim, who was picked up at the Niger Cat area of Warri on October 22.
A search on him uncovered a bag filled with ammunition, including 115 rounds of 7.62mm AK-47 bullets, 220 rounds of SMG ammunition, and 32 cartridges.
Preliminary findings, Edafe stated, linked the suspect to the supply of weapons to bandit groups in the north. He is also accused of having ties to the abduction and murder of Ogheneovo Onemu, who was kidnapped in Edjekota community, Ughelli North, on May 27, 2024 and later killed after a ransom of ₦4 million was paid.
Commissioner of Police Olufemi Abaniwonda said the arrests show the Command’s determination to stop the flow of illegal arms and dismantle criminal networks. He called on residents to remain alert and support security agencies with reliable information that can help reduce crime in the state.
