The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has arrested four suspects in three separate operations across the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), uncovering alleged links between electricity cable vandals and prospective buyers of stolen infrastructure materials.
The suspects were arrested in Abaji, Kubwa and Wuye over alleged vandalism, unlawful possession and trafficking of electrical cables, including high-tension aluminium conductors, electrical installation wires and armoured cables.
The latest arrests followed an intensified crackdown on the destruction of critical national assets, barely a week after the corps paraded suspected Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) cable vandals apprehended in Kwali Area Council.
The FCT Commandant of the NSCDC, Dr Olusola Odumosu, disclosed the arrests on Wednesday in Abuja, warning that the corps would expand its operations beyond suspected vandals to include individuals allegedly purchasing, receiving, concealing or facilitating the sale of stolen electrical materials.
In one of the operations, two 27-year-old men, identified as Amos Makama of Kokona Local Government Area, Nasarawa State, and Ibrahim Mohammed Maitama Inuwa of Dala Local Government Area, Kano State, were arrested over the alleged theft of electrical installation cables at Government Secondary School, Kubwa, popularly known as Black and White Secondary School.
Odumosu said the incident occurred at about 1 a.m. on Saturday, October 17, following reports of suspicious movements around the school premises.
According to him, NSCDC operatives attached to the Kubwa Base Station apprehended Makama at the scene and recovered approximately 38 rolls of electrical installation cables, cut pieces of power cables concealed in a sack, a pair of pliers, a screwdriver and other items suspected to have been used in the operation.
Preliminary investigations, the commandant said, indicated that Makama allegedly entered the school through its gate in the evening, cut electrical wires in the buildings and remained on the premises until around midnight before attempting to escape over the fence with the materials.
Odumosu alleged that Makama subsequently disclosed that he had contacted Inuwa to purchase the cables and that the latter had paid an advance of N35,000.
The command reportedly contacted the alleged buyer under the guise of arranging the sale of the materials. Inuwa was subsequently arrested when he arrived at the agreed location.
The two suspects reportedly told investigators that they had been involved in the business since 2024. Their alleged involvement and reported statements have yet to be tested in court.
In a separate operation at the Residential Quarters in Abaji Area Council, NSCDC anti-vandal patrol operatives arrested a 44-year-old man, Mammud Nuhu, over the alleged unlawful possession and storage of high-tension aluminium conductor cables suspected to have been removed from electricity infrastructure.
Odumosu said the arrest followed credible intelligence and sustained surveillance by the command’s anti-vandal team.
He added that preliminary investigations indicated that Nuhu allegedly told investigators that two other men, identified as Saifullah, 32, and Abdulrahman, 25, had brought the cables to him for safekeeping pending their sale to prospective buyers.
The two alleged accomplices were still at large as of Wednesday, while efforts were ongoing to apprehend them and identify other individuals suspected of involvement in the operation.
Bundles of high-tension aluminium conductor cables suspected to have been vandalised from an AEDC installation in Abaji were recovered.
The command said Nuhu was profiled and his statement obtained after he was cautioned. He was subsequently granted administrative bail on the condition that he produce a credible surety.
The third operation followed a tip-off from members of a local vigilante group concerning suspicious activities around Berger Roundabout along the Wuye axis of Abuja.
Odumosu said an officer attached to the command’s Critical National Assets and Infrastructure department received the information during a routine patrol at about 10.30 p.m. on October 20.
NSCDC operatives subsequently arrested a 20-year-old man, Suleiman Jafaru, from Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State, over alleged excavation and theft of armoured cables.
An unspecified quantity of armoured cables and a digger were recovered at the scene, according to the command.
Preliminary investigations reportedly suggested that three persons were involved in the operation, with two alleged accomplices escaping before Jafaru’s arrest. Their identities and whereabouts had yet to be established as of Wednesday.
The commandant also disclosed that Jafaru alleged he had been assaulted by members of the vigilante group before being handed over to NSCDC operatives. Odumosu said the allegation required appropriate documentation and verification.
Odumosu described the vandalism of electricity infrastructure as a direct threat to public welfare, economic activity and national development, warning that the destruction and theft of cables could disrupt electricity supply, increase repair costs and expose residents to electrocution and fire hazards.
He noted that small businesses, artisans, healthcare facilities and educational institutions were particularly vulnerable to power disruptions, while the cost of replacing stolen materials diverted resources that could otherwise be used to improve electricity services.
The commandant stressed that the alleged involvement of buyers and receivers demonstrated the need to dismantle the market for stolen electrical materials, rather than concentrating enforcement efforts solely on those who physically remove the cables.
“The NSCDC FCT Command will therefore pursue not only those who physically remove these materials but also those who knowingly purchase, receive, conceal or facilitate their sale,” he said.
He urged residents, community leaders, commercial motorcyclists, tricycle operators, traders and scrap-metal dealers to report suspicious activities around electricity installations to the appropriate authorities.
Odumosu reaffirmed the command’s commitment to intelligence-led operations and stronger collaboration with relevant stakeholders to protect critical national assets and infrastructure throughout the FCT.
The arrests mark a further escalation in the corps’ efforts to combat electricity infrastructure vandalism in the federal capital, following the recent operation in Kwali that led to the parade of suspected AEDC cable vandals.
The NSCDC said it would sustain the crackdown, with particular attention to suspected buyers, storage facilities and other links in the alleged trade in stolen electrical materials.
