DSS Arrests Five Suspected Arms Suppliers Over Papiri School Kidnapping
The Department of State Services (DSS) has apprehended five individuals, including two foreign nationals, over their alleged involvement in supplying weapons to the criminal network responsible for the mass abduction at St. Mary's Catholic School in Papiri, Niger State, in November 2025.
According to the agency, the arrests followed a series of intelligence-driven operations targeting a suspected arms trafficking syndicate believed to have provided logistical support to the kidnappers behind one of the country's largest school abductions in recent years.
Security operatives initially intercepted three suspects along the Kaduna–Zaria highway while they were reportedly on their way to receive a shipment of illegal weapons. Subsequent investigations led to the arrest of a suspected transnational arms trafficker, identified as Goni Ibrahim from the Diffa region of neighbouring Niger Republic, along with an associate, Tukur Sani.
During the operation, security personnel recovered a cache of weapons and ammunition, including 15 AK-103 rifles, 15 magazines, and 1,434 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition allegedly concealed inside a vehicle used by the suspects.
In a related development, another alleged member of the network, identified as Alhaji Adamu, popularly known as Gado Banufe, was later arrested in Yauri, Kebbi State.
Investigators believe the suspects played a significant role in supplying firearms to the armed group that carried out the attack on St. Mary's Catholic School on November 21, 2025.
The incident saw heavily armed assailants invade the boarding school and abduct hundreds of students and staff members. While some victims managed to escape during the attack, more than 250 others were reportedly taken into the forests surrounding the Kainji Lake Reserve.
The DSS said investigations remain ongoing as efforts continue to dismantle the wider network linked to the kidnapping operation and illegal arms trafficking activities.
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