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Hafsat Bako. |
The National Orientation Agency, NOA, had on Wednesday, July 2, 2014, posted on its Facebook page a statement about the arrest of a Boko Haram female accomplice, identified as Hafsat Bako.
However, the details of the arrest were not given by the government agency.
In a bid to confirm the arrest, Obanikoro went his twitter handle @MObanikoro to tweet about the arrest and also posted the photo of the Boko Haram’s female accomplice.
Below is how the news was posted on the minister's official twitter handle:
JUST IN: Nigeria Military arrest Boko Haram accomplice and informant, Hafsat Bako via @NOA_Nigeria#EndBokoHarampic.twitter.com/XfMZbr5bIJ
— Musiliu Obanikoro (@MObanikoro) July 2, 2014
Among them a businessman, Babuji Ya’ari, based in Maiduguri, who allegedly helped the insurgents plan several attacks and murders under the cover of a pro-government vigilante group, Civilian JTF, fighting Boko Haram.
The Director of Defence Information, Major General Chris Olukolade, also informed recently that two women were also arrested, with one accused of coordinating payments to other “operatives”.
According to Olukolade,"Ya'ari used his membership of the Civilian JTF as a cover", while remaining an active terrorist.
"His main role in the group is to spy and gather information for the terrorists."
Olukolade claimed the man had coordinated several deadly attacks in Maiduguri since 2011 and was involved in the killing of a traditional ruler, the Emir of Gwoza.
Meanwhile, the Director of Defence Information, Maj. Gen. Chris Olukolade, informed that interrogating the arrested abduction mastermind helped to acquire information that would lead to arrest of other members of the terrorist cell.
The abductor, Babuji, identified one of them as Hafsat Bako. The woman is allegedly responsible for coordinating the payment of other operatives on the payroll of the group with a minimum of N10,000 to each, as she later confessed.
Olukolade continued saying: "Until their arrest, all the suspects actively operated a terrorists’ intelligence cell in collaboration with others still at large."