Mr. Stephen Okolo, an official of the Department of State Services (DSS), has revealed that the use of advanced technology facilitated the arrest of three security personnel charged with kidnapping and banditry in Oyo State.
Okolo made this disclosure on Monday while testifying before Justice N.E. Maha at the Federal High Court in Ibadan. He appeared as the first prosecution witness (PW1) in the trial of three officers of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and an alleged illegal arms dealer.
The NSCDC officers—Olamide Okesola, Adedeji Adewale, and Asmau Omar—stand accused alongside Emmanuel Olatunji, an alleged unlicensed arms dealer.
“My Lord, due to the increasing cases of kidnapping and banditry in the Okeogun area of Oyo State and parts of Kwara, the DSS employed technical expertise and equipment to address the situation. Through sustained surveillance, we were able to identify, trace, and apprehend the perpetrators,” Okolo testified.
He further stated that the operation led to the identification of two key terrorist leaders in the region, known as Baguda and Banshile, described as highly dangerous. In January 2023, the DSS launched an operation that resulted in the arrest of Lawan Buhari, alongside one NSCDC official allegedly supplying ammunition to the terrorists.
Subsequent investigations and operations led to the arrest of the other three defendants—Okesola, Olatunji, and Adewale. During his testimony, Okolo presented a bag containing 1,000 rounds of live ammunition as evidence, recovered from Buhari. He noted that disrupting the ammunition supply chain had significantly reduced the rates of kidnapping and banditry in the affected areas.
In his testimony, Lawan Buhari, the second prosecution witness (PW2), admitted to supplying AK-47 rifles and ammunition to the defendants, who, in turn, funneled them to terrorist networks.
“Before my arrest and detention at the 81 Battalion Barracks in Mokola, I was serving with the Operation Burst security outfit. It was during this time that the trio approached me and solicited arms supplies,” Buhari confessed.
The DSS prosecution counsel, Mr. T.A. Nurudeen, informed the court that the defendants were arraigned on a 15-count amended charge, including conspiracy, terrorism, unlawful arms dealing, and aiding and abetting terrorism.
All four defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges. Justice Maha adjourned the case to February 11 for further proceedings.
