Vigilante Arrests Women With Assault Weapons In Maiduguri-PREMIUM TIMES

A youth vigilante group, popularly called "the Civilian JTF'', said it
apprehended two women attempting to smuggle assaultweapons into the
Monday market in Maiduguri on Sunday.
Eyewitnesses told journalists that the women, who concealed the
weapons in their dresses, were nabbed at the Bulabulin entrance gate
of the market.
One of the witnesses, Modu Bulama, a trader, said that they were in
the market when they heard noise from the gate.
"We rushed to scene, but on getting there, we saw two women in veil
with assault weapons,'' he said.
Mr. Bulama said that each of the women concealed an AK 47 rifle, a
pistol and some items believed to be Improvise Explosive Devise (IED)
in their veil.
A member of the vigilante, Usman Ibrahim, corroborated Mr. Bulama's
claim, adding: "we were on a routine checking at the gate when these
women came with heavy veil.
"At first we did not bother to look at them, but we realised that one
of them was shivering, we said something must be wrong,'' Mr. Ibrahim
said.
He said that when they were searched, "'we found that each of them
concealed an AK 47 rifle, a pistol and IED in their veil.
"We were surprised at the discovery, so we took them to officialsof
the Joint Task Force (JTF) on Operation Restore Order (ORO) for
investigations," Mr. Ibrahim said.
The JTF spokesman, Lt.-Col. Sagir Musa, could not be contacted for
comment, but a senior military officer, who spoke on condition
anonymity, confirmed the story.
The official said the JTF was already investigating the case.
(NAN)