9,303 Terrorists Killed, 9562 Surrender In 1 Year – SCIPC

Security force in Nigeria killed 9,303 terrorists, arrested 6,998 while 9,562 Boko Haram/ISWAP combatant fighters and their families surrendered in one year.

The forces also rescued 4,641 hostages held in captive by the criminal elements between May 2023 to May 2024.

The disclosure was made on Thursday by the Director Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. Edward Buba during the joint briefing by Security, Defence and Response agencies organised by the Strategic Communications Interagency Policy Committee (SCIPC) under the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

He said troops arrested 1,437 suspected oil thieves, destroyed 3,051 dugout pits as well as 1,276 boats, 3,924 storage tanks within the period, while 408 vehicles and stolen products worth N91,247,052,565 were recovered.

General Buba also said troops killed 363 criminals and rescued 245 kidnap hostages in the Niger Delta region.

Similarly, the Nigerian Police Force within the year arrested 4,796 armed robbery suspects and 3,068 kidnap suspects as well as 2,474 suspects for rape/sexual crimes within the period.

Also, 1,213 suspects were arrested by the police for unlawful possession of firearms, 3,523 suspected cultists, 3,381 suspects for murder/homicide, and 13,382 others for other offences.

The police further disclosed that it rescued a total of 1,713 kidnap victims and recovered 1,465 vehicles/motorcycles; 2,566 firearms and 19,310 rounds of ammunition.

Speaking further, he said the Nigeria Police prosecuted 29,052 cases out of which it secured 16,200 convictions in one year.

Maj.Gen. Buba gave a breakdown of prosecuted cases as “7,675 cases conclusively dispensed, 11,376 suspects currently undergoing trial, 51 cases under appeal in appellate courts, and 16,200 cases resulted in the conviction of suspects who have received various punishments for their criminal acts”.

In the same vein, the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) on the others foiled 48 attacks/kidnap attempts on schools as it dismantled over 1,975 illegal mining sites across the country.

The security agency also uncovered over 165 illegal local refineries which were dismantled in the period under review.

Relatedly, the Nigeria Customs Service generated over ₦3,991,988,348,853.32 revenue within the period.

“The Nigerian Custom Service generated exceptional revenue of about 4 Trillion (₦3,991,988,348,853.32)

“National security and anti-smuggling efforts led to significant seizures of contraband goods, illegal arms, and narcotics,” Buba said.

The agencies recovered over 21,000 pump action cartridges, 440 pump action rifles, and 228,741 rounds of ammunition and, prevented potential attacks by recovering suicide jackets and lethal weapons.

The Defence Spokesman added that, “Criminal activities involving illicit petroleum products were disrupted, with 50,000 illicit liters impounded.”