The Borno State Police Command has arrested five suspects for vandalising and stealing railway tracks worth millions of naira.

According to a press release by SP Nahum Daso Kenneth on Tuesday, the incident occurred on March 29, 2025.

A police patrol team, acting on “credible information”, intercepted a group travelling along the Maiduguri-Damaturu Road in Kaga Local Government Area. 

The team, led by the Area Commander Benisheik Area Command, discovered the suspects in possession of “sixty-two (62) railway slippers and forty-eight (48) rail tracks”. The Command’s spokesman said.

“Investigation revealed that the suspects stole this critical infrastructure and attempted to smuggle it out of the state before being accosted,” the statement said.

The arrested individuals are Abba Modu Shuwa, 25, from Benisheik town; Mustapha Bura, 25, from Benisheik town; Ali Malami, 17, from Benisheik town; Mustapha Abba, 27, from Benisheik town; and Bahisa Abubakar, 25, from Bama Town.

The stolen railway materials were recovered and taken to the Area Command. 

“Preliminary investigations are ongoing,” and the case will be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID) in Maiduguri “for further discreet investigation and prosecution,” the police confirmed.

The Borno State Police Command, under CP Yusufu Mohammed Lawal, has emphasised its commitment to “protecting public infrastructure” and ensuring that those involved in “acts of vandalism and criminal activities are brought to justice.”