DSS Re-Arrests Fugitive Linked to Kuje Prison Attack- Ekohotblog

DSS re-arrests terror suspect linked to 2022 Kuje prison escape.
Officials say he coordinated violent attacks across Edo and Kogi.
NSA earlier confirmed arrests of Ansaru leaders behind major crimes.

The Department of State Services has re-arrested a wanted terror suspect, Abdulazeez Obadaki, one of the inmates who escaped during the July 2022 attack on the Kuje Correctional Centre in the Federal Capital Territory. Obadaki was among more than 800 inmates, including Boko Haram members, who fled after armed insurgents overpowered security personnel during the raid.

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EKO HOT BLOG reports that security officials confirmed that Obadaki had been on the DSS watchlist for his alleged involvement in violent crimes committed after the jailbreak. According to the agency, he was responsible for coordinating the attacks on banks in Uromi, Edo State, and the fatal shooting at Deeper Life College in Okene, Kogi State, both recorded in 2022.

His re-arrest comes nearly three months after the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, announced the capture of two men identified as leaders of the Ansaru terrorist network. Speaking during a briefing on security developments in August, Ribadu named the suspects as Abu Baraa, described as the Amir, and Mahmuda, recognised as the deputy Amir.

Ribadu explained that Mahmud Muhammad Usman, also known as Abu Baraa, coordinated several terrorist sleeper cells across the country. He noted that the suspect had directed major kidnappings and armed robberies used to fund extremist operations.

He added that the second suspect, Mahmud al Nigeri, also known as Mallam Mamuda, served as the group’s chief of staff and led the Mahmudawa cell operating around Kainji National Park, extending into Niger and Kwara States and parts of Benin Republic. Ribadu revealed that Mamuda received weapons and explosives training in Libya between 2013 and 2015 under foreign instructors from North Africa.

Both men, according to security authorities, had been on Nigeria’s most wanted list for years and were linked to multiple attacks on civilians, security agencies, and critical national assets.