The police in Zamfara State have confirmed an attack by suspected bandits on the Gusau-Funtua Federal Highway in Tsafe Local Government Area, rescuing nine travellers who were trapped by the criminals.
The command also arrested a suspected arms courier and recovered 11 locally fabricated AK-47 rifles in a separate operation conducted along the same highway.
The incident took place on Friday, August 28, 2026, according to a statement issued by the state Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Yazid Abubakar.
The statement said the incident began at about 1:20pm after the Tsafe Divisional Police Headquarters received reports of heavy gunfire around the Kwanoni-Gidan Giye section of the highway.
It said suspected bandits had blocked two vehicles and launched an attack on their occupants.
One of the vehicles was a Sharon mini-bus, with registration number KWL 742 ZY, driven by Lawal Dauda from Zaria Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
The vehicle was carrying seven passengers travelling from Gusau to Zaria.
The second vehicle, an unregistered bus driven by Haruna Alhaji Nasiru of Danja LGA, Katsina State, had his son, Sanusi Haruna, onboard and was conveying dry cassava from Sokoto to Funtua.
The police said the Tsafe Divisional Police Officer, supported by operatives of the Violence Crime Response Unit (VCRU) and military personnel operating under Operation FANSAN YAMMA, promptly advanced to the location after receiving the distress call.
The security personnel exchanged gunfire with the bandits, compelling them to abandon the operation and escape towards the mountainous outskirts of Tsafe town.
“Some of the bandits are believed to have sustained gunshot wounds,” the statement said.
It added that all nine occupants of the two vehicles were rescued without injuries.
In another operation at about 5:30pm on the same day, VCRU operatives apprehended a 50-year-old man, Khalid Umar, who was allegedly transporting 11 locally fabricated AK-47 rifles.
Umar, a resident of Bawa Ganga Village in Tsafe LGA, was stopped along the Funtua-Tsafe Federal Highway after operatives acted on credible intelligence.
According to the police, preliminary investigations revealed that the suspect was allegedly transporting the firearms from Shuwaki Village in Bakori LGA of Katsina State to Bawa Ganga in Zamfara.
The suspect remains in police custody, while the recovered firearms have been secured as investigations continue.
The police said further investigation would establish the source and intended recipients of the weapons, as well as uncover other individuals involved in their procurement and transportation.
The command assured motorists and residents that it would continue joint patrols and intelligence-driven operations along major highways and other vulnerable locations across the state.
It said the measures were designed to restrict the activities of criminal elements and guarantee the safety of travellers.
