Criminals have kidnapped no fewer than five expatriates from Burkina Faso while they were engaged at a gold extraction site close to Arafa village in the Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State.
This information was revealed in a message on X by Zagazola Makama, an expert on counter-insurgency and security in the Lake Chad vicinity.
The source indicated that the event transpired around 11:15 am on March 14, when a sizable group of criminals, allegedly lying in wait between Arafa and Gidan Dankande villages, targeted the mining site and compelled the employees to an undisclosed location.
It mentioned that the heavily armed criminals swiftly retreated into the adjacent forest. By the time security forces dispatched from a nearby Operation FANSAN YAMMA base arrived, the offenders had disappeared.
The source noted that efforts are underway to locate the bandits and guarantee the safe return of the kidnapped foreign nationals, with security teams scouring the region for information on their location.
It also pointed out that this occurrence is part of the perilous link between illicit mining and armed thuggery in Zamfara.
Recall that throughout the years, the mineral riches of the North West, including gold, copper, and lithium, have transformed into a double-edged sword, drawing both lawful investors and violent criminal factions that exploit the resources for profit.
