Troops of the 176 Guards Battalion, have arrested a suspected kingpin of an illegal mining syndicate and three other suspects.
The suspects were arrested during a raid on illegal mining sites in Gwagwalada Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
This is contained in an operational report made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Thursday in Abuja.
The report said that the operation was carried out at about 8;30 p.m., on July 13 at Dukpa community following actionable intelligence.
It said that the intelligence was generated after the arrest of a group of illegal miners in the community on July 7, leading troops to identify and raid the syndicate’s operational base.
According to the report, the principal suspect confessed during preliminary interrogation to sponsoring the illegal mining operation.
It also disclosed that he recruited laborer’s from Katsina State to carry out illegal mining activities within the FCT.
“Items recovered during the operation include one motorcycle, two digging tools, seven filter carpets, seven pumping machine nozzles, 53 wraps of suspected cannabis, ₦360,400 cash and other mining implements.
“The suspects and recovered exhibits are currently in military custody pending further investigation and handover to the appropriate authorities for prosecution,” the report said.
The report added that the raid was part of ongoing anti-illegal mining operations under Operation MESA, aimed at dismantling illegal mining networks, protecting Nigeria’s mineral resources and addressing security threats associated with illicit mining activities in the FCT.(NAN).
