Delta State Governor, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, has ordered a sweeping crackdown on criminal syndicates following the interception of a large cache of sophisticated weapons by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) in Asaba, the state capital.
Governor Oborevwori, who visited the Delta State Command of the DSS on Monday, described the development as a major milestone in the ongoing campaign to rid the state of insecurity and violent crime.
“I am very delighted to be here today. I had to leave another important engagement to be here because the breakthrough recorded by our security agencies is highly commendable and significant to the peace and safety of our state,” the governor stated.
He commended the DSS and other security agencies for their coordinated intelligence and commitment, noting that their success underscored his administration’s dedication to ensuring peace and safety across Delta State.
While expressing concern over recent incidents of violence, particularly in Warri and its environs, Oborevwori issued a stern warning to individuals and groups bent on disrupting public peace.
“Those who are planning to cause crisis should have a rethink. We want peace, not trouble. We are working hard to open up Warri for investors and economic growth, but violence will only drive investors away,” he cautioned.
The governor vowed that his administration would not tolerate any form of criminality or arms smuggling, declaring that anyone caught would face the full weight of the law.
“Bringing in heavy arms and ammunition of this nature is unacceptable and a direct threat to our collective peace. We will not allow it under any circumstance,” he stressed, urging residents to support security agencies in safeguarding the state.
Speaking on the killing of Mr. Jerry Aduara, a respected youth leader in Warri, the governor directed security agencies to fish out the perpetrators and their sponsors.
“I have directed security agencies to arrest the person who shot and killed somebody in Warri. They should look for that person and bring him to book, including those backing him. Nobody involved will go scot-free because this is Delta State, and we want peace,” Oborevwori declared.
He reaffirmed his administration’s unwavering commitment to maintaining law and order, emphasizing that no individual or group would be allowed to take the law into their own hands.
Earlier, the Deputy Director of Operations, DSS Delta State Command, Mr. Anthony Ifemeje, briefed the governor on the intelligence-driven operation that led to the arrests.
According to Ifemeje, the operation, conducted on October 12, 2025, in Asaba, resulted in the arrest of a notorious arms dealer, identified as Stephen Sabo Atoshi, and his accomplice, a 40-year-old secondary school teacher from Taraba State.
The suspects, he revealed, belong to an international arms trafficking network that smuggles small arms and light weapons from Sebha, southern Libya, through Chad and into Nigeria via an illegal border route in Gidam, Yobe State.
“During interrogation, the prime suspect confessed to having spent eight years in the illegal trade and to having supplied over 55 weapons, including General Purpose Machine Guns (GPMGs) and AK-47 rifles, across the country,” Ifemeje said.
Recovered items included seven GPMGs, several AK-47 rifles, five hand grenades, and other military-grade weapons concealed in bags of beans transported from the North to the Oko Food Market along the Asaba–Onitsha Expressway.
Additionally, operatives discovered 497 cartons of fake drugs intended for circulation within the state.
Ifemeje assured the governor of the command’s continued vigilance and readiness to dismantle arms trafficking networks and block illegal weapon supply routes in Delta State.
