The Department of State Services (DSS) has arrested five suspected members of an arms supply network believed to have supported the gunmen responsible for the mass abduction at St. Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, Niger State, in November 2025.
Among those apprehended were two citizens of Niger Republic, while security operatives also recovered a significant cache of weapons and ammunition during the operations.
According to security sources, the suspects were allegedly involved in transporting arms and ammunition to criminal groups operating across parts of northern Nigeria, including those linked to the deadly school attack that shocked the nation last year.
Recovered items included 15 AK-series rifles, multiple magazines, and 1,434 rounds of live ammunition.
Investigators identified two of the suspects as Yusuf Mohammed, popularly known as Bature, and Mubarak Ibrahim.
Mohammed is reportedly listed among wanted members of Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad, widely known as Boko Haram.
Security officials disclosed that the pair were intercepted along the Zaria-Kaduna Highway while allegedly travelling to receive a shipment of weapons intended for their commanders.
Further intelligence gathering and follow-up operations reportedly led operatives to another key suspect, Goni Ibrahim, described as an international arms courier from the Diffa Region of neighbouring Niger Republic.
Ibrahim was arrested alongside an alleged associate, Tukur Sani. Security sources said the two men were travelling in a blue vehicle where operatives discovered a large quantity of weapons concealed within the automobile.
The seizure included 15 AK-103 rifles, 15 magazines, and 1,434 rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition.
Days after the initial arrests, DSS operatives reportedly tracked down another suspected member of the network.
The suspect, identified as Alhaji Adamu, also known as Gado Banufe, was arrested in Yauri, Kebbi State.
Preliminary investigations, according to security sources, suggest that all five suspects functioned as arms couriers for the gunmen who carried out the November 2025 attack on the Catholic boarding school in Papiri.
The attack occurred in the early hours of November 21, 2025, when dozens of heavily armed gunmen riding motorcycles stormed the school premises and rounded up students and staff members at gunpoint.
The incident triggered nationwide outrage and renewed concerns about insecurity and attacks on educational institutions across the country.
Although approximately 50 students managed to escape during the confusion that followed the invasion, more than 250 pupils and staff members were taken away by the attackers.
The captives were reportedly forced to trek for several days through difficult terrain before being moved into the vast Kainji Lake Reserve forest, where they were held.
The abduction became one of the largest school kidnappings recorded in recent years and prompted extensive rescue efforts by security agencies.
After weeks of operations and negotiations, government officials announced a breakthrough.
On December 21, 2025, both the Federal Government and Niger State authorities confirmed that the remaining 130 hostages had been rescued and safely reunited with their families.
Officials at the time stated that no student or staff member remained in captivity, bringing an end to a month-long ordeal that had attracted national and international attention.
The latest arrests are being viewed as a significant development in ongoing efforts to dismantle the networks responsible for supplying weapons to terrorist groups, bandits, and kidnapping syndicates operating across parts of northern Nigeria.
Security agencies have continued investigations aimed at uncovering additional members of the arms trafficking network and identifying other individuals connected to the Papiri school abduction.
