The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has dismantled a notorious inter-state car-snatching syndicate allegedly operating across six stated of the federation.
The areas are: the Federal Capital Territory, Nasarawa, Kaduna, Benue, Kogi, and Plateau states.
The successful operation was sequel to a directive by the Commandant-General (CG), NCDC, Prof. Ahmed Abubakar Audi, according to ACC Afolabi Babawale, National Public Relations Officer, NSCDC National Headquarters, Abuja on Friday.
Acting on credible intelligence, the CG”s Special Intelligence Squad, launched targeted operations that led to the arrest of six suspects.
The suspects were identified as Hassan Bukar; Adam Musa, (also known as Yellow); Ibrahim Haruna, (a.k.a. Biggie); Adamu Mohammed; Sahal Abdullahi Aliyu; and Abubakar Yusuf.
Other members of the syndicate, reportedly remain at large.
Preliminary investigations have revealed that the car jackets usually stole vehicles and resold them to scraps and spare parts dealers, who dismantled the cars, removed components for resale, thereby erasing traces of their real ownership.
Payments for such illicit transactions were mostly laundered through cash or PoS transfers, to avoid detection.
Commander of the CG SIS, Commandant A.S. Dandaura, said that five shops at the Zuba Scrap Market, have been sealed and marked as exhibits.
According to him, a dismantled Toyota Camry sold for ₦1.15 million was recovered during the operation at Zuba.
Dandaura added that the CG NSCDC will sustain discreet crackdown on criminal networks threatening public safety, adding that investigations have been expanded to apprehend fleeing members of the syndicate.
One of the suspects, Abdulsalam Isa, admitted in his statement that he acted as a courier for Ismail Haruna (a.k.a. Malam na TK), who is currently at large.
Isa said he collected vehicles from suppliers, including one Mohammed, said to reside at Gwagwalada, and another individual identified to live at Ugwako.
According to the investigators, Isa disclosed that during the past Ramadan, he and Ismail visited Sauka to confront a suspect named Dangwari over unpaid dues.
Ismail allegedly instructed him to collect stolen vehicles from Dangwari at Sauka Bridge and Airport Bridge, though the deliveries failed.
He was eventually arrested at the Zuba Bridge while attempting to colleact another stolen vehicle.
Financial record of their bank transactions showed regular transactions between Abdulsalam and Ismail Haruna, linking Ismail to the coordination and disposal of stolen vehicles.
A prima facie case of criminal conspiracy, theft, receiving stolen property, and assisting in concealment, have been established against the suspects under Sections 96, 286, 305, and 318 of the Penal Code.
On his part, Hassan Bukar was arrested with a stolen Toyota Corolla on April 3, 2026, at Keffi, Nasarawa state and had confessed to removing over 160 stolen vehicles since 2014.
Adam Musa was said to be implicated in the purchase and resale of several stolen cars, including a Honda Civic and Toyota Rav-4.
Other suspects, including Sahal Aliyu Abdullahi and Abubakar Yusuf, were linked to the dismantling and selling vehicle spare parts without verifying their true ownership.
One Mathew Atsenga Aondongu, a member of the syndicate, who is said to live at Makurdi is said to be at large.
Exhibits recovered from them included Toyota Corolla-LE 2003, Honda-EOD 2004, Toyota Corolla-CE, Toyota Corolla 1998, Honda Accord 2008, eight different vehicle particulars, and 61 vehicle license plates.
In a separate incident on May 5, 2026, NSCDC operatives at BUA International Cement Factory, Okpella, Edo State, arrested two company employees, Goodday Okhagbe and Monday Previous, for the theft of four number 25-liter jerrycans of hydraulic fluid.
Another two suspects, Mainasara Samuel Markus and Sanni Abba, were arrested for vandalism and theft of installed cables at the plant’s Line-1 preheater machine.
The NSCDC reaffirmed its commitment to eradicating organized crime and urged the public to report suspicious vehicle transactions and demand valid ownership documents before purchase.
All suspects, according to the statement will be charged in court to serve as a deterrent to others, according to ACC Babawale, the National Public Relations Officer.
