Officers with the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps arrested a 22-year-old man in Kano on suspicion of vandalising railway equipment. The suspect, Sani Ismail, hails from Kuya village in Ikara Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
Intelligence reports guided operatives to him in Kiru Local Government Area. They discovered he'd removed eleven rail line clips from the ongoing Kaduna-Kano railway project.
A hammer used in the theft was recovered from his possession. SC Ibrahim Idris Abdullahi, the NSCDC's Kano spokesperson, confirmed the arrest in a statement.
He noted that preliminary investigations showed the suspect targeted materials on the Federal Government's standard gauge railway under construction. The clips were part of the installation work.
In a separate operation, officers also apprehended two alleged imposters. Yusuf Usman and Muhd Auwal, both 22, claimed to be civil defence volunteers without authorisation.
Both men are from Kawo Jirga in Nassarawa Local Government Area. They weren't registered in the NSCDC volunteer database, according to authorities.
The pair operated from an office displaying the NSCDC logo illegally. They're accused of harassing and mistreating a social media comedian at that location.
Investigators have wrapped up their probe into the fake volunteers' activities. Abdullahi said appropriate legal action would follow against both suspects.
