Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
DAMATURU, Nigeria – The Yobe State Police Command has arrested five suspects for allegedly vandalising railway infrastructure and recovered 85 steel sleepers unlawfully removed from railway installations. The suspects were apprehended on Thursday, June 4, 2026, during a joint operation by the police and local hunters in the Nannawaji area of Gujba Local Government Area.
The police said the suspects were intercepted in a white Mitsubishi Canter vehicle with registration number YAB‑234YJ (Abuja), loaded with 85 railway steel sleepers believed to have been stolen from railway tracks. The vehicle was heading to Potiskum Local Government Area when security operatives stopped it following intelligence reports.
The suspects are Abdullahi Habu, 27, from Potiskum LGA; Abba Muhammed, 18, from Buni Yadi in Gujba LGA; Salisu Adamu, 20, also from Buni Yadi; Isiyaka Adamu, 20, from Potiskum LGA; and Muhammed Muhammadu, 23, from Kukareta in Damaturu LGA.
“The suspects were arrested in a Mitsubishi Canter vehicle loaded with 85 railway steel sleepers suspected to have been unlawfully removed from railway installations,” the police said in a statement released on Saturday, June 6, 2026.
The police said the suspects confessed that the alleged mastermind behind the operation is a 45‑year‑old man named Abba Chari, a resident of the Yadin Buni area in Gujba LGA. Officers have launched a manhunt for Chari and other accomplices.
Yobe State Commissioner of Police, CP Usman Kanfani Jibrin, issued a stern warning to those engaged in destroying public infrastructure.
“Anyone found engaging in the vandalisation of public infrastructure or any criminal activity will face the full wrath of the law,” CP Jibrin said.
The commissioner also reassured residents that the police are committed to protecting public assets across the state. He urged citizens to remain vigilant and report suspicious activities to the authorities.
This incident is part of a troubling trend in Yobe State. In July 2025, troops of Operation Hadin Kai intercepted a truck loaded with vandalised railway tracks in Gujba LGA and arrested eight suspects, including five personnel of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps who were allegedly providing cover for the criminals. The NSCDC officers were reportedly enlisted by the vandals to facilitate the illegal transport in exchange for cash incentives.
Earlier in May 2026, the NSCDC impounded a truck carrying about 450 vandalised railway sleepers in Damaturu and arrested three suspects. The repeated arrests point to a well‑organised network of criminals profiting from the theft of critical railway materials.
The Nigerian Railway Corporation has repeatedly raised alarm over the economic impact of these crimes. The stolen steel sleepers are often sold to scrap dealers or melted down for other uses, causing huge financial losses and delaying railway modernisation projects.
As of Monday, June 8, the police had not announced whether the suspects would be charged in court. Investigations are ongoing, and authorities say more arrests are expected. The recovered sleepers have been secured as exhibits.
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