The police have mobilised to foil plans by terrorists to attack the southern part of the country sequel to the infiltration of the region by suspected Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province terrorists.
As part of the strategies to prevent terrorists’ attacks, the police chiefs in Lagos met on Monday just as the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps warned Nigerians against employing fleeing terrorists.
Also, it was gathered that police and the Department of State Services had deployed detectives to fish out fleeing terrorists in the South.
This followed the arrest of a suspected Boko Haram commander working as a security guard at a residential building in the Ijaiye area of Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, on Saturday.
The arrest of the Boko Haram commander has triggered a flurry of emergency security meetings by law enforcement agencies in Lagos and Ogun states, and apprehension among residents in the southern part of the country.
The development is coming on the heels of the July 5 attack on the Kuje Medium Security Custodial Centre, Abuja, where 69 Boko Haram commanders were freed by the Islamic State West Africa Province.
Also, suspected terrorists attacked the Presidential Guards Brigade troops at Bwari-Kubwa road, Abuja, in which a captain, lieutenant and six soldiers were killed and others wounded.
A leaked memo from the NSCDC indicating that Boko Haram and ISWAP terrorists were amassing dangerous weapons for massive attacks on Katsina, Lagos, the Federal Capital Territory, Kaduna, and Zamfara States, created fear in Abuja and anxiety across the country.
The PUNCH learnt that suspected terrorist arrived in Abeokuta from Katsina, took up a security job at Ijaye, while gathering intelligence for an attack.
Security sources said he moved to Abeokuta to set up a cell for kidnapping and terror attacks.
But acting on intelligence, the DSS operatives apprehended him.
A source said, ‘’It was not an easy ride. Intelligence and the grace of God were sufficient for the operatives. There are still many of them (terrorists) around, but we are on top of our game.”
