Security agencies in Kogi State have been placed on high alert following an intelligence report by the Nigeria Police Force indicating a large movement of armed bandits into parts of Kogi East. The classified警wireless communication, issued by the State Intelligence Department (SID) in Lokoja and obtained by Chronicle Reporters, warns that the fleeing gunmen pose an imminent threat to key public institutions.
According to the police signal, the bandits — many reportedly clad in military uniforms — have relocated into dense forest areas around Bassa and the Anyigba/Ochaja axis. They are believed to be escaping ongoing military offensives in neighbouring Kwara and Niger states.
The intelligence report, marked “AC INT X INTREP”, identifies several high-risk targets, including:
- Ochaja Boys and Girls Secondary Schools
- Prince Abubakar Audu University, Anyigba
- Banks across Kogi East
- Police stations
- Worship centres
Sources disclosed that the bandits are heavily armed with AK-47 rifles and other sophisticated weapons, and may be planning coordinated attacks on public facilities.
The memo further directed the immediate fortification of police stations across the affected areas, warning of potential surprise assaults. It recommended urgent security actions such as:
- Immediate briefing of all Divisional Police Officers in Anyigba, Bassa, Dekina and Egume
- Deployment of additional Quick Response Unit (QRU) and Police Mobile Force (PMF) operatives
- Intensified stop-and-search operations on major roads
- Heightened patrols, surveillance and intelligence gathering
- Reinforced presence in vulnerable communities
The communication emphasised the need for sustained intelligence monitoring as the situation evolves.
This alarming development comes barely 24 hours after the Director-General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Tosin Adeola Ajayi, met with President Bola Tinubu in a closed-door briefing at the Presidential Villa. According to Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga, the DSS boss presented a detailed security assessment amid rising nationwide concerns over banditry and terrorism.
The federal government has faced growing pressure to act decisively as attacks escalate across several states. Speaking on Friday, Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, acknowledged ongoing killings but insisted the government is taking “significant steps” to address the crisis.
The situation in Kogi East is now considered critical, with authorities racing to prevent what could become another wave of mass abductions and attacks on educational institutions — a pattern that has resurfaced in recent incidents across the northern region.