The Department of State Services has arrested five suspected arms couriers linked to gunmen who abducted students and staff of St. Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri Village, Niger State, on November 21, 2025.
The suspects, including two Nigeriens, were apprehended in coordinated operations across Kaduna, Niger and Kebbi states.
A statement on Monday said the suspects were believed to have supplied weapons used in the mass abduction of nearly 300 victims.
According to the statement, one of the arrested suspects, Yusuf Mohammed, also known as Bature, who is listed among wanted members of Jama’atu Ahlis Sunna Lidda’awati wal-Jihad (Boko Haram), was intercepted alongside his associate, Mubarak Ibrahim, along the Zaria–Kaduna highway while allegedly en route to collect a weapons consignment.
“The Department of State Services (DSS) has arrested five persons, including two Nigeriens, suspected to be arms couriers to gunmen who, on November 21, 2025, attacked St. Mary’s Catholic school in Papiri Village, Niger State, abducting nearly 300 students and staff.
