Operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) have arrested Musa Abubakar, a suspected major arms dealer believed to be a key supplier of weapons to armed groups responsible for violent attacks in Plateau State and other parts of northern Nigeria.
Abubakar was apprehended on November 12, 2025, following actionable intelligence that linked him to large-scale manufacturing and distribution of high-calibre weapons.
According to a DSS source, the suspect confessed to producing and supplying sophisticated firearms and ammunition to criminal groups fueling the recurring violence across the region. His arrest followed a series of intelligence-led operations that culminated in a targeted raid on his illegal arms-manufacturing workshop in the Mista Ali area of Bassa Local Government Area, Plateau State.
Operatives recovered an assortment of Improvised Explosive Device (IED) components, chemicals and equipment used in the fabrication of weapons.
The breakthrough comes shortly after the DSS recaptured Abdulazeez Obadaki, also known as Bomboy, a Kuje Prison escapee accused of masterminding the Owo and Deeper Life Church attacks in Kogi State.
Security analysts say the two arrests underscore the service’s intensified efforts to degrade terror networks and strengthen national security.
The agency has recently recorded a string of operational successes, including the arrest of nine high-profile suspects linked to deadly attacks in Plateau and Benue States.
Among them is Timna Manjol, 46, of First Baptist Church, Mangu LGA, Plateau State, who has already pleaded guilty to two of four charges, including illegal possession of firearms, in a case marked FHC/ABJ/CR/451/2025.The DSS says it remains committed to dismantling criminal networks and preventing further escalation of violence in the region.
