BY BANNERNEWS Reporter
The leader of the gang which attacked ECWA Church in Aiyetoro area of Kogi State last year, Shafiu Usman has been arrested by the Department of State Security, DSS, in a hideout in Gombe State.
He has recounted his various atrocities to the secret police during interrogation.
Usman has confessed to orchestrating the Ayetoro church attack, as well as other kidnappings in Niger, Kwara, and Kogi States.
Usman had revealed that he collaborated with Ibrahim Dange Battijo, a notorious bandit operating across Niger, Kwara, Kogi, and Zamfara States to carry out the dastardly attack.
Usman also admitted to involvement in kidnapping, banditry, and cattle rustling.
He said Ibrahim Battijo supplied him with arms and ammunition.
“After the Kogi attack, Usman fled to Gombe, but DSS operatives trailed and arrested him.
“This arrest underscores the DSS’s ongoing achievements in tackling banditry and terrorism, including recent operations in Gombe State that neutralized arms trafficking networks, rescued kidnap victims, and dismantled cross-state syndicates,” he said.
Usman remains in DSS custody awaiting arraignment.
He had fled to Gombe State after the ECWA Church attack where he har been lying low with his gang members.
Media reports said no fewer than 30 worshippers, mostly children and elderly, were kidnapped on December 14, 2025, when armed men on motorcycles attacked the Ayetoro-Kiri community in Kabba/Bunu LGA of Kogi State.
The attackers specifically stormed different homes and churches before fleeing through nearby forests after their mission was completed.
