The Nigerian military has reiterated its commitment to eliminating the notorious bandit leader, Bello Turji, assuring the public that he is being closely tracked.
This assurance was given by the Chief of Defence Operations, Major General Emeka Onumajuru, during an appearance on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Monday.
Major General Onumajuru stated that the military is fully aware of Turji’s current location but declined to provide further details for operational reasons. He emphasized that efforts to neutralize the bandit leader remain a top priority.
“First, I need to let you know that there is absolutely no forth and back between Bello Turji and the armed forces.
“As I speak Bello Turji is hiding, completely in hiding and the armed forces is tracking him, the Armed Forces continuously track him and very soon he will be eliminated,” Major General Onumajuru said.
He appealed to Nigerians to be patient with the Armed Forces, saying that tracking a bandit leadership can take time in some cases, but assured that it won’t be too long before Turji is brought down and his operation in the Northwestern part of the country ended.
‘Don’t pay levy to Turji’
A Sokoto State Lawmaker, Honourable Aminu Almustapha Boza, last week confirmed the presence of Turji in one of the forests in Isa Local Government Area of Sokoto State.
The Lawmaker, who represents Sabon Birni Local Government Area in the state House of Assembly, told our correspondent in a telephone chat that Turji has been collecting tax from the people in the area.
However, Major General Onumajuru has urged the people of Sokoto to call Turji’s bluff and refrain from paying the tax, assuring them of the military’s protection.
“Talking about Bello Turji imposing fines, remember I did talk about protecting vulnerable communities. Now, the communities need to believe that the Armed Forces are protecting them and when they believe that it’s a question of calling anybody that asks you for protection money or ransom money bluff because the Armed Forces is there to protect you.
“So, I want to ask the communities now through your medium, do not accede to request for protection levy in whatever form because we have troops who guarantee farms security, who open space to go about your normal activities,” Major General Onumajuru said.
This is not the first time the military has pledged to apprehend Bello Turji, who has long terrorized the North-West region.
During Channels Television’s 2024 Year-In-Review program on December 31, 2024, the Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, assured that the Armed Forces would capture the notorious bandit leader.
General Musa emphasized that it is only a matter of time before Turji, who has caused devastation in communities across Sokoto, Zamfara, and Kebbi, extorting hefty ransoms through kidnappings and other criminal activities, is brought to justice.
“The update is that since he knows we’ve been after him, he has been operating underground and we are conducting operations,” the CDS said when asked for an update on Turji who has been on the run for a while.
“What we have been doing, of recent, is that we are picking everybody close to him; all those giving him support in one way or the other, we have picked them, we have killed his commanders. It’s just a matter of time,” the defence chief added.