ABUJA, NIGERIA – In a striking blend of combat grit and victory celebration, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has successfully liberated five kidnapped victims following a fierce gun battle in the dense Byazhin forest area of Abuja.
The high-stakes jungle operation, which culminated on Tuesday night, June 9, 2026, was personally led by the FCT Commissioner of Police, CP Ahmed Muhammed Sanusi. In an unconventional show of leadership from the front lines, CP Sanusi and a joint security team embedded themselves deep within the difficult forest terrain for four days, tracking a notorious syndicate that had been terrorizing local communities.
The operation was launched in direct response to the recent uptick in targeted abductions within the Paze community in Byazhin. Utilizing precise intelligence, CP Sanusi activated a heavily armed joint clearance team consisting of the Command’s Anti-Kidnapping Unit, the Nigeria Police Force Intelligence Response Team (IRT), the Kubwa Area Command, and local security volunteers, including hunters and vigilantes.
The Jungle Ambush and Gun Duel
Security operatives successfully located the criminal hideout deep within the forest as the bandits held five hostages. Upon realizing they were surrounded, the kidnappers opened fire, triggering a violent gun duel.
”We got our proper intel and activated it. We came here waiting for them, and luck ran against them,” CP Sanusi stated in a video broadcast by Channels Television.
During the firefight, police operatives neutralized two of the bandits and successfully apprehended two others, identified by police authorities as Icheh Mohammadu and Abubakar Usman. Two AK-47 rifles alongside fully loaded magazines were recovered at the scene. Several other gang members managed to escape into the nearby hills, scaling the rocky terrain with varying degrees of gunshot wounds.
An Unconventional Victory Banquet
With all five hostages safely liberated and unharmed, the joint security team marking a hard-fought victory chose to celebrate right on the battlefield. Proving that morale remains sky-high among his men, CP Sanusi revealed that the security forces slaughtered a ram and threw an impromptu party directly inside the liberated forest hideout.
”Yesterday we even did a party; we slaughtered a ram and enjoyed ourselves. So we are happy being here,” a smiling CP Sanusi told reporters, standing in the rugged terrain. “The kidnappers have been coming in from this area… but the victims were liberated, we neutralized two and caught two.”
Medical Alert Issued for Fleeing Suspects
Following the raid, the FCT Police Public Relations Officer, SP Josephine Adeh, confirmed that the five rescued victims were immediately moved to a nearby medical facility for clinical evaluation before being reunited with their anxious families.
Meanwhile, the Police Command has placed all public and private hospitals, as well as community healthcare practitioners across the FCT and neighboring states, on high alert. Medical personnel are strictly mandated to promptly report any individual presenting with gunshot-related injuries or seeking clandestine treatment.
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CP Sanusi highly commended the bravery, resilience, and synergy displayed by both the conventional police operatives and the local hunters. He reiterated that the FCT security architecture has been heavily fortified, warning criminal elements that Abuja’s forests will become their graves rather than their sanctuaries.
You can watch a detailed video report on how the security forces tracked the suspects and managed the tactical operation on the FCT Police Rescue Mission Coverage, which provides a deeper breakdown of the community intelligence that enabled this breakthrough.
