Operatives of the Department of State Service (DSS) have finally apprehended the suspect said to have masterminded the deadly attack on First Evangelical Church Winning All (ECWA) in Ayetoro Kiri, Kabba/Bunu Local Government Area of Kogi State, which led to the abduction of no fewer than 20 worshippers on December 14, 2025.
Security sources disclosed that the suspect, Shafiu Usman, was nabbed at a hideout in Gombe State, where he had been hiding and lying low to avoid being found and arrested by the security agents.
During investigation, he confessed to orchestrating the Ayetoro Church attack, as well as other kidnappings in Niger, Kwara, and Kogi states.
Usman revealed that he collaborated with Ibrahim Dange Battijo, a notorious bandit operating across Niger, Kwara, Kogi and Zamfara states.
Usman admitted to involvement in kidnapping, banditry, and cattle rustling. He said Ibrahim Battijo supplied him with arms and ammunition.
After the attack, Usman fled to Gombe, but the DSS operatives trailed and arrested him.
It notes the arrest underscores the DSS’s ongoing achievements in tackling banditry and terrorism, including recent operations in Gombe State that neutralized arms trafficking networks, rescued kidnap victims, and dismantled a cross-state syndicates.
The suspect is now in DSS custody awaiting arraignment.
-9News Nigeria.
