Troops Arrest Bandit Kingpin’s Deputy, Wife in Gombe Following Intelligence Operation

Security forces have arrested the deputy to notorious bandit leader Kachalla Auta and his wife in Gombe State in a successful intelligence-driven operation. The suspects, identified as Bala, popularly known as “Pakapaka,” and his wife, Zulaha Bala, were apprehended after they fled from Dajin Madam Forest in Plateau State. They were tracked across multiple locations by operatives who maintained sustained surveillance on fleeing members of the criminal syndicate. The couple is now in custody and undergoing interrogation to establish the extent of their involvement in the bandit group’s operations and any links to other cells within and beyond the region. In a related operation, troops carried out follow-up patrols around Bayar village in the Duguri axis based on intelligence suggesting that the main kingpin, Kachalla Auta, may have escaped into the area. However, no encounter occurred during the search. Security sources say troops remain active in the general area, conducting sustained patrols to restrict the movement of criminal elements and dismantle their networks across Plateau, Taraba, and neighbouring states.

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