The Nigerian military high command says troops engaged in anti-terrorist operations in the Northern parts of the country killed no fewer than 9,303 terrorists and arrested 6,998 in the last one year.
It also disclosed that a total of 9,562 Boko Haram combatant fighters and their families surrendered to security forces within the year under review.
Director, Defence Media Operations, Major General Edward Buba, disclosed these during the joint briefing by Security, Defence, and Response agencies organised by the Strategic Communications Interagency Policy Committee under the Office of the National Security Adviser in Abuja on Thursday.
Buba also said 4,641 hostages were rescued, 1,437 suspected oil thieves arrested as well as stolen crude oil products worth N91.2bn recovered by troops within the period under review.
The military spokesman said, “Our counter-terrorism and insurgency operations, troops neutralized 9,303 insurgents, arrested 6,998 individuals, and rescued 4,641 hostages. Notably, 9,562 Boko Haram/ISWAP combatant fighters and their families surrendered to security forces. In the fight against oil theft, 1,437 perpetrators were apprehended, with 363 neutralized. Additionally, 245 kidnapped hostages were rescued, leading to a marked decrease in insurgent activities.
“Notable achievements in the last twelve months include the prevention of oil theft, and denying criminal elements access to an estimated sum of N91,247,052,565.”
Buba also stated that the Nigeria Police Force within the same year, arrested 4,796 armed robbery suspects; 3,068 kidnap suspects; 2,474 suspects for rape/sexual crimes and 1,213 suspects for unlawful possession of firearms.
Buba added, “The police also arrested 3,523 suspected cultists, 3,381 suspects for murder/homicide, and 13,382 suspects for other offences.
“The Police rescued 1,713 kidnap victims and recovered 1,465 vehicles/motorcycles, 2,566 firearms, and 19,310 rounds of ammunition.”
He also said the Nigeria Police Force, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission secured a total of 19,630 convictions in the last year.
Buba specifically added that the EFCC recovered money in different currencies from some of its suspects.
He said, “The Police prosecuted 29,052 cases within the year and secured the conviction of 16,200 suspects.
“EFCC made significant progress in the fight against economic and financial crimes, securing 3,412 convictions and recovering vast sums of money both in local and foreign denominations. The recovered amounts include N161,642,239,242.30; $43,835,214.24; £25,365.00 ; €186,947.10 ; ₹51,360.00; C$3,750.00; A$740.00; ¥74,754.00 ; R35,000.00; 42,390.00 UAE Dirhams ; 247.00 Riyals, and 21,580,867.631 Crypto Currency.
“Key achievements and initiatives of ICPC include the recovery and forfeiture of assets, recovering over N66 billion in cash and rent on forfeited assets. Assets worth N5.882 billion were restrained, and N366.97 million was forfeited through judicial processes. Investigations and prosecutions saw 131 investigations and 18 convictions.”
On the achievements of the Nigeria Customs Service, Buba said the agency generated about N4tn during the year review.
He said, “Relatedly, The Nigerian Customs Service generated exceptional revenue of about 4 Trillion (₦3,991,988,348,853.32) revenue within the period. National security and anti-smuggling efforts led to significant seizures of contraband goods, illegal arms, and narcotics.”
