DSS, Community Vigilantes Neutralize Bandit Kingpin Idi Abasu Aiki, 60 Others in Katsina
An intelligence-led operation by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), supported by members of the Katsina State Community Vigilantes and specially trained hunters, has resulted in the killing of over 60 suspected bandits, including notorious kingpin Idi Abasu Aiki, during a major security operation in Bakori Local Government Area of Katsina State.
Security sources said Idi Abasu Aiki, who had long been linked to several deadly attacks across Katsina and Zamfara States, was among those neutralized alongside 14 of his top commanders.
According to the sources, more than 200 heavily armed bandits, led by Aiki and reinforced by fighters from the notorious Ado Aleru gang operating in Zamfara State, had invaded Guga village in Bakori LGA with the intention of attacking communities accused of supporting the Community Watch Corps protecting surrounding settlements.
The sources revealed that the planned assault was intended as a reprisal following the heavy losses the bandits suffered last month at Dawan Laila village, also in Bakori LGA, where local hunters successfully repelled an earlier attack.
“Unknown to the bandits, the DSS had already put in place a watertight intelligence-led operation. The over 200 armed bandits literally walked into a trap. More than 60 of them, including Idi Abasu Aiki and 14 of their top commanders, did not come out alive,” one of the security sources disclosed.
The operation, however, came at a cost, as four members of the Katsina State Community Vigilantes and the specially trained hunters were killed during the fierce exchange of gunfire.
Following the operation, DSS operatives and supporting security groups launched an extensive clearance exercise across the area, recovering weapons and other items abandoned by the fleeing bandits.
Security authorities described the operation as a significant blow against armed banditry in the North-West, noting that the elimination of Aiki and several of his commanders is expected to weaken criminal networks operating across Katsina and Zamfara States while boosting ongoing efforts to restore peace and security in the region.
