DSS Nabs Key Arms Supplier, Disrupts Terror Cells in Katsina, Nasarawa

Nigeria's Department of State Services (DSS) has announced a significant operational success, apprehending Abubakar Mubarak, a notorious kingpin in the illicit arms trade, and dismantling a network responsible for supplying weapons to terr*rists operating across Katsina and Nasarawa States. Mubarak, aged 28 and originally from Mashema Village in Zurmi Local Government Area of Zamfara State, was taken into custody by DSS operatives on Tuesday, August 24, 2026, in Magabar Jibia, Jibia Local Government Area of Katsina State.

This crucial arrest led to the unraveling of an extensive arms trafficking chain that stretched across several northern states. Community leaders from both Katsina and Nasarawa, who engaged with newsmen in separate interviews, expressed profound gratitude to the security agency for neutralizing the criminal syndicate. A community leader in Jibia LGA, speaking through an interpreter, remarked, “We are very relieved and thankful to the DSS for arresting Mubarak. Many villagers are aware of the terror his men have been unleasing on us over the years. We are however thankful that the Almighty Allah has used the DSS to bring their reign of terror to an end.”

The operation also saw the arrest of Ismail Lawalli, an arms courier, on Sunday evening along the Keffi–Abuja Highway in Nasarawa State. Lawalli, also a native of Mashema village, was found in possession of a substantial cache of ammunition, including 1,099 rounds of 7.62mm, 57 rounds of 5.56mm, and 106 rounds of General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) ammunition. A retired security agent and community leader from a settlement near Keffi confirmed Lawalli's arrest and provided these details.

According to the community leader, Lawalli confessed to transporting the ammunition for Mubarak, who had allegedly financed the haulage. This confession was instrumental in guiding DSS operatives to the kingpin in Katsina State. Further investigations revealed that Mubarak’s elder brother, Mustapha Abubakar, had been arrested earlier in the year in Gusau, the capital of Zamfara State, also on charges related to arms trafficking. Mustapha was reportedly caught with one AK-47 rifle and 20 rounds of ammunition.

Both suspects are currently in DSS custody, undergoing further investigation, and are expected to face prosecution by the agency. The community leader from Nasarawa lauded the DSS’s relentless efforts, stating, “I commend the DSS for being unrelenting in its resolve to track and dismantle illicit arms supply networks, and other actors who fuel insecurity across the country. We hope that with the combined efforts of other security agencies, insecurity would soon be a thing of the past.”