 The Department of State Services (DSS) has intercepted 25 firearms and 825 magazines allegedly smuggled into Nigeria from the Niger Republic through Sokoto State.
The weapons, comprising 21 AK-47 rifles and four PKT machine guns, were recovered on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, at Dawakawa in Goronyo Local Government Area.
The consignment was reportedly transported on camels through difficult terrain to evade security surveillance. Security analyst and counter-insurgency expert, Zagazola Makama, said the operation followed intelligence gathering on suspected cross-border arms trafficking networks.
In a separate operation, DSS operatives arrested Hafsat Umar, a suspected female arms courier, in Talata Mafara Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
She was allegedly found with 12 grenades and two ammunition belts and suspected of sourcing ammunition in Niger State for delivery to a suspected bandit leader, Saidu Marafa, in Kani Kawa, Maradun Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
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A security source said Umar would be prosecuted, while intelligence from the investigation would be used to track other suspects.
Her arrest brings renewed attention to the DSS’s reported crackdown on female arms couriers. The agency reportedly arrested 14 suspected couriers across Zamfara, Nasarawa, Ebonyi, Taraba, Kaduna and Plateau states between February 2025 and November 2026.
Among previous cases, Chika Aguzie and Blessing Nwamba were arrested in Ebonyi State in September 2026 over alleged links to weapons and explosives supplies to commanders of the outlawed Eastern Security Network. Operatives reportedly recovered 14 wraps of suspected explosive detonators.
In October 2026, DSS operatives arrested Aisha Mohammed in Keffi, Nasarawa State, recovering 202 rounds of AK-47 ammunition and three empty magazines.
Separately, three women, Halima Abdullahi, Safiya Salihu and Halima Umar were sentenced to 20 years’ imprisonment each by the Federal High Court in Abuja for terrorism-related offences.
The latest interception underscores continuing efforts to dismantle illegal weapons networks supplying armed groups across Nigeria.