Yobe Police Bust Five-Member Fraud Syndicate Across States

The Yobe State Police Command has arrested a five-member syndicate accused of defrauding victims across multiple states in a ritual scam. The suspects—Abdullahi Suleman, Sani Salisu, and Nasiru Mohd, all from Gombe State; Alhasan Illiya from Yobe State’s Potiskum Local Government Area; and Weti Mohd from Ngorore, Adamawa State—were apprehended during a joint operation by the State Intelligence Department (SID) and Tarmuwa Divisional Police Headquarters.

According to SP Dungus Abdulkarim, the Police Public Relations Officer for the command, the syndicate deceived victims by posing as travelers in need of help. They claimed to perform rituals that would protect individuals from enemies and bring prosperity, defrauding them of large sums of money. The latest victim, Mallam Audu Shehu of Shekau Village in Tarmuwa LGA, was swindled of N500,000. However, police later recovered the stolen amount during a search of the suspects’ belongings.

The suspects confessed to the crime, revealing that it was their first fraudulent operation in Yobe, but they had been involved in similar scams in Adamawa, Gombe, and Taraba states over the past three years.

Commissioner of Police Garba Ahmed reassured the public of the command’s dedication to safeguarding residents and urged them to stay alert and report any suspicious activity to the nearest police station.