NSCDC arrests officers over sale of weapons, recovers AK-47 rifle sold to buyer in Otukpo
NSCDC Uncovers Alleged Illegal Sale of Service Rifles
ABUJA — The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has reported a significant breach involving the alleged diversion and illegal sale of service rifles by its personnel.
NSCDC spokesperson Babawale Afolabi disclosed the findings during a press briefing on Friday in Abuja. He stated that the investigation, conducted by the Commandant-General’s Special Intelligence Squad (CG’s SIS), resulted in the arrest of a personnel connected to the crime at the agency’s headquarters.
According to Afolabi, the suspect is accused of removing an AK-47 rifle from their post after completing their shift, failing to return it to the armory. The investigation revealed that the individual concealed the rifle in two polythene bags, left their duty station without authorization, and transported the weapon to Otukpo in Benue State.
“The investigation revealed that the officer subsequently delivered the rifle to an individual in Otukpo under a prior arrangement for 700,000 naira,” Afolabi said. It is alleged that the buyer then resold the AK-47 to an illicit arms purchaser known as IBB for 800,000 naira.
Afolabi also noted that the main suspect attempted to obscure the offense when questioned about the missing weapon, along with making attempts to sign out another rifle. “Through covert tracking, surveillance, and tactical interrogation, the intelligence team apprehended the principal suspects and recovered the AK-47 rifle,” he explained.
In a related investigation, the CG’s SIS uncovered a systematic diversion of two G3 rifles from a NSCDC armory between 2018 and 2024. The investigation implicated a senior personnel who served as the head of the armory in the NSCDC Adamawa command. This officer allegedly removed the rifles without authorization, subsequently selling them to junior personnel in separate transactions for 210,000 naira and 220,000 naira, respectively.
The investigation indicated that this individual falsified weekly armory records to conceal the disappearance of the firearms during routine stocktaking. After a physical count by an assistant, the senior officer allegedly altered the register by handwriting the serial numbers of the missing rifles into the stock records, creating the impression that the firearms remained accounted for in the armory.
Afolabi confirmed that the investigations revealed a clear pattern of misconduct, leading to the recovery of confessional statements and other evidence from key individuals involved. He emphasized the corps’ renewed commitment to ensuring accountability in armory management to prevent service weapons from falling into criminal hands.
“Internal disciplinary procedures against implicated officers have been completed. The NSCDC Commandant General, Ahmed Audi, has directed the Directorate of Legal Services to initiate legal proceedings against all suspects in this case in appropriate courts,” Afolabi stated.
In an additional development, the squad reported the interception of a telecommunications vandalism syndicate. One suspect was apprehended while attempting to remove 12 telecommunication panels that had been vandalized from an equipment cabinet. Afolabi noted that this criminal activity had persisted for an extended period.
“The NSCDC Directorate of Legal Services is currently pursuing a 60-day remand order and search and arrest warrants to allow the CG’s SIS to apprehend additional members of the syndicate across Delta and Kano states,” he added.
