Troops of the Forward Operations Base (FOB) in Yobe State have apprehended a 43-year-old man caught with 19 seed-planting machines, part of a recent distribution under the state’s Agriculture Empowerment Programme. The arrest took place at around 12:10 a.m. on Tuesday on the Potiskum to Gombe Road, according to a statement by Brigadier General Dahiru Abdulsalam (retired), Special Adviser to Governor Mai Mala Buni on Security Matters.
The suspect was transporting the equipment in a blue 18-seater bus with the registration number KTG 449 YG. The planters were allegedly concealed within the vehicle, and the man failed to provide any documentation proving he was a legitimate beneficiary of the program.
Abdulsalam revealed that the suspect, a resident of Jigawa State, claimed he purchased the equipment from a man named Alhaji Babaji in Damaturu for ₦50,000 each and intended to resell them in Dutse, Jigawa. However, the suspect could not produce any authorization for the items.
The arrested individual, along with the recovered seed planters, will be handed over to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) for further investigation and prosecution. This action follows directives from Governor Buni, who ordered security agents to arrest anyone found attempting to move the equipment out of Yobe State.
