The Kano State Multi-Agency Task Force on Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking has arrested 380 suspects and secured over 230 convictions in two months of intensified operations across the state.
The Chairman of the Task Force, Muhuyi Magaji, disclosed this at a press briefing in Kano, while reviewing the committee’s activities since its inauguration on July 22, 2026.
He said the operations targeted drug joints, criminal hideouts and other identified hotspots linked to drug abuse, thuggery, phone snatching and related social vices.
According to him, the operations led to the recovery of various illicit substances, including Cannabis Sativa, Tramadol, Diazepam, Pentazocine, Pregabalin, Exol-5 and a designer drug containing Methamphetamine.
The Task Force also recovered locally made weapons, including knives, cutlasses, daggers and clubs, allegedly used by suspected criminals to intimidate residents and resist arrest.
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Magaji disclosed that about 870,000 capsules of Pregabalin were seized from a pharmaceutical company over suspected diversion for illicit use.
He warned pharmaceutical companies, pharmacy managers and other stakeholders against allowing controlled drugs to leak into illegal markets, urging them to strengthen supply-chain monitoring and internal controls.
On child protection, the chairman said two dealers, Kabiru Isa and Usman Hamisu, were convicted for allegedly exposing 43 underage children to intoxicating substances.
He said the children, who were engaged in street scavenging, had been rescued and were receiving medical attention, counselling and treatment, while efforts were ongoing to reunite them with their families.
The Task Force also reported progress in its campaign against youth gangs, known locally as “DABA,” with several suspected gang members arrested and convicted.
Among those mentioned were Abdullahi Ahmad, Abubakar Sada, Abdullahi Sani and Umar Aliyu.
Magaji further disclosed the arrest and conviction of a member of a phone-snatching syndicate known as “Yan Liya,” which allegedly uses tricycles to steal mobile phones.
He said a tricycle linked to the syndicate had been forfeited, warning owners who knowingly make their vehicles available for criminal activities that they risk losing the vehicles.
Drug Rehabilitation
Beyond enforcement, the Task Force said it had referred about 125 people for rehabilitation at the Kano Reformatory Institute, Kiru.
Magaji said increasing demand for rehabilitation had pushed the Kiru facility to capacity, prompting the state government to provide an additional facility in Tofa Local Government Area.
He added that the Task Force was working with industrial stakeholders to provide skills acquisition, employment and other opportunities for rehabilitated youths.
He said the initiative had set a target of taking 10,000 youths off the streets, rehabilitating them, equipping them with vocational skills and supporting their reintegration into society.
The chairman said the campaign combines enforcement with prevention, noting that the Task Force had conducted sensitisation programmes in communities, schools, markets, religious institutions and other locations across Kano.
He commended security agencies and other stakeholders for supporting the campaign and urged members of the public to provide credible information to assist efforts to combat drug abuse, thuggery and other forms of criminality.
Magaji said the Task Force remained committed to supporting efforts to create safer communities and address the social and economic consequences of drug abuse in Kano State.
