By Abdullahi Alhassan, Kaduna
KADUNA — Tip-offs from residents have paid off in Makarfi Local Government Area, where a joint team of police and vigilantes raided two bandit holding houses and forced suspected kidnappers out of communities along the Kaduna-Kano border.
The early morning operation took place at about 8:00am. Operatives of the Kaduna State Police Command, working with members of the Kaduna State Vigilance Service, moved into Durum and Danguzuri communities after weeks of intelligence gathering from locals living under the threat of attacks.
DSP Mansir Hassan, Police Public Relations Officer for Kaduna State Command, said the raid was a direct response to credible information provided by the community.
During the sweep, security operatives identified two buildings used by criminal gangs. The structures at Rugar Mijin Goggo and Unguwar Maryamu in Danguzuri were pulled down. Police said both locations had served as holding camps where abducted victims were kept before ransom demands were made.
No arrests or casualty figures were disclosed. Officials said the priority was to dismantle the infrastructure that allows bandits to operate with impunity around the border area.
“This operation is part of sustained efforts to deny criminal groups freedom of movement and to protect lives and property across Kaduna State,” Hassan stated.
Following the raid, joint patrols were deployed to maintain presence in the area. Hassan confirmed that “normalcy has been restored. The general area remains calm.”
CP Rabiu Muhammad, Commissioner of Police, Kaduna State, praised the vigilance service and residents for their role. He said community cooperation was decisive in locating the camps and will remain central to ongoing security work.
“Community partnership remains one of the most effective tools in the fight against insecurity,” CP Muhammad said. He urged the public to keep sharing timely and accurate information with security agencies.
The Commissioner also reiterated the Command’s commitment to sustaining offensive operations against banditry and related crimes in the state.
Security sources note that Danguzuri and Durum sit on a corridor frequently used by armed groups moving between Kaduna and Kano. By taking down the camps, authorities hope to disrupt routes used for moving kidnapped persons and for staging attacks on nearby villages and farmlands.
The police said similar clearance exercises are planned for Makarfi and other flashpoints in the days ahead, as part of a wider push to reclaim rural spaces and rebuild public trust.
Locals who spoke after the operation said they had noticed a drop in tension. Markets that had recorded low turnout and farms that were abandoned are gradually reopening as patrol teams maintain visibility in the communities.
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