FCT Police Arrest Five Suspects Including Pregnant Woman in Abuja Kidnapping Network Bust

The Federal Capital Territory Police Command has arrested five suspects allegedly connected to a kidnapping and banditry network operating on the fringes of Abuja. Among those detained is a heavily pregnant woman who, according to the police, was supplying food and logistical support to the gang and their captives right up until the day she was arrested.

FCT Commissioner of Police Ahmed Sanusi disclosed the arrests to journalists in Abuja, linking them to a clearance operation carried out in the Byazin district on June 11, 2026. That operation, he said, resulted in the arrest of several suspects, the neutralization of others, and the rescue of abducted victims. Follow-up intelligence then led security personnel to a second location, where additional suspects were picked up.

There is no comfortable way to write about Hauwa Shafiu, so maybe it is better to just be honest about the complexity here.

She is accused of being the logistics supplier and cook for a criminal gang, someone who prepared meals for both the kidnappers and their hostages. According to Commissioner Sanusi, she was heavily pregnant at the time of her arrest and continued her alleged involvement in the network despite that.

"One of the suspects operates as a logistics supplier and cook for the criminal gang and their hostages. She was heavily pregnant at the time of her arrest, yet her pregnancy did not deter her from continuously committing this heinous crime," Sanusi said.

After her arrest, she was taken to hospital, where she gave birth.

"The baby is sound and safe. She too is sound. We have provided every medical need while we watch her recuperate," the commissioner stated.

To be honest, that detail lands differently depending on who you are. Some people will read it as the police being humane in difficult circumstances. Others will find the juxtaposition of a newborn and a kidnapping network deeply disturbing. Both reactions are probably reasonable. What is clear is that the FCT Police arrest of the kidnapping network suspect in Abuja includes a child who had no say in any of this, and that is worth acknowledging quietly before moving on.

The items recovered during the investigation paint a picture of how this network apparently functioned day to day. These were not people living like fugitives. They were, to some extent, hiding in plain sight.

Recovered items included:

• Four motorcycles
• Several tramadol tablets
• Five mobile phones
• A Point of Sale (POS) terminal
• Cooking utensils
• N320,000 in cash

That POS machine is worth noting. It suggests financial transactions were happening, possibly ransom-related payments moving through informal channels. One suspect allegedly admitted that the N320,000 cash found on him was his share of a ransom payment from a recent abduction. Investigators are working to confirm that.

The tramadol is a recurring feature in these kinds of network busts across Nigeria. It keeps coming up, and it keeps pointing to the same thing: the use of opioids to manage both criminal gang members and, in some documented cases, hostages.

Commissioner Sanusi said the group had embedded themselves inside a local community approximately one kilometre from the FCT boundary, using that position to gather intelligence and coordinate repeated attacks on targeted individuals and locations.

"The group had infiltrated and integrated into a local community just about one kilometre from the FCT, enabling them to gather intelligence and coordinate repeated attacks on targeted persons and locations," he said.

One kilometre from Abuja. That is the detail that probably deserves the most attention in this entire story. The FCT Police arrest of this kidnapping network is not about a distant rural insurgency. It is about a criminal operation that was watching, planning, and running logistics from what is effectively the capital's backyard.

One suspect was also accused of handing a motorcycle to two fleeing robbers during the June 11 operation. Another, named as Shamsudeen Mustapha, faces allegations of supplying illegal substances to network members.

The full list of named suspects includes Hauwa Shafiu, Muhammad Yunusa, Yahaya Abdullahi, and Shamsudeen Mustapha.

Sanusi said the command would work with the FCT Administration to demolish the buildings used as hideouts by the suspects. That is a significant step, and one that tends to get less coverage than arrests but arguably matters more for long-term disruption of a network.

Operations are still ongoing. The commissioner confirmed that several additional suspects have been identified and are being pursued.