Police in the Northern Region have arrested two persons for illegally possessing firearms without lawful authority.
The two suspects Andani Yakubu Wahid aged 30 years and Alhaji Abdul Salam Abdul Sobo were arrested by a joint police operation carried out by the Counter Terrorism Unit (CTU), the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) and local police patrols.
The suspects were arrested with one AK 47 assault rifle, loaded with 15 rounds of ammunitions, a pump action gun also loaded with 5 cartridges and a bulletproof vest at Bagliga Dakpemyili on May 22, 2021 at about 1100hrs.
At a press briefing in Tamale, the Deputy Northern Regional Police Commander, DCOP Moses A. Atibilla disclosed that a police operational team were responding to a chieftaincy crisis at Bagliga Dakpemyili, a village of about 20kms off Tamale when the two suspects were arrested.
“The two suspects were intercepted in a Hyndai Santafi 4×4 car with registration number GW 3225-16 at the village and a search conducted in the vehicle revealed a bag containing the weapons at the back seat”.
DCOP Moses Atibilla opined that Police preliminary investigations revealed that the suspects were recruited by Yapalisi Naa of Vittin Alhaji Aminu Ayuba to escort a newly installed chief from Banvum/Tamale to the village.
“Police got information that the chief of Banvum elevated a sub-chief of Bagliga known as Kobilmahinaa to equal status with the Bagliga chief. The action of the Banvumlana was resisted by the Bagliga Chief and his supporters and they gave indication that they would resist the entry of the chief to Bagliga”.
“Yapalisi Naa of Vittin Alhaji Aminu Ayuba was identified as lead person who organized young men to forcefully escort the chief to the community and to deal with any resistance that might happen”.
He added that the two suspects laid ambush with the weapons on the only road leading to the village to attack opponents of the chieftaincy divide and the Joint Police Team chanced on them and arrested them.
DCOP Moses Atibilla also said Police in the course of investigations arrested the said Yapalisi Naa Alhaji Aminu Ayuba.
He indicated that an empty AK47 magazine was found in his wardrobe, one locally made sword and a Jack knife found in the room when suspect Andani’s house was searched.
DCOP Moses Atibilla added that the homes of suspects Alhaji Abdul Salam Abdul Sobo and suspect Yapalisinaa Alhaji Aminu Ayuba were also searched but nothing was found.
The suspects Andani Yakubu Wahid and Alhaji Abdul Salam Abdul Sobo were arraigned before the Tamale District Court and were remanded into Police custody until 31 May 2021 whiles Yapalisinaa Alhaji Aminu Ayuba was granted a bail of 20,000 with one surety.
Story by: Edward A. Ken-Zorre
