Saudi Arabian security operatives have arrested two women believed to be the wife and mother of Ado Aliero, one of Nigeria’s most notorious bandit leaders, while they were performing Hajj in the holy city of Medina.
Sources familiar with the case said the duo was apprehended in an intelligence-led operation targeting fugitives linked to the Northwest insurgency. The women, reportedly living under false identities, were said to be part of a wider network supporting Aliero’s criminal enterprise.
A trending video shows the two women sitting among other pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.
Ado Aliero has been a central figure in mass abductions and deadly attacks across Zamfara and surrounding states. He remains high on Nigeria’s most wanted list, with growing concerns over transnational support for bandit operations.
Saudi and Nigerian security agencies are said to be working closely together as investigations continue. Though the roles of the women are yet to be officially confirmed, they are believed to possess crucial intelligence on Aliero’s network, movements, and sources of funding.
Meanwhile, in a separate but related operation, Nigeria’s Department of State Services (DSS) on Monday arrested a suspected kidnap kingpin, Sani Galadi, at Sultan Abubakar International Airport in Sokoto.
Galadi was apprehended around 11:15 a.m. during the screening of outbound pilgrims at the Hajj terminal, following a surveillance operation. His arrest came less than 24 hours after another kidnap suspect was picked up at the Hajj camp in Abuja.
The Abuja suspect had earlier been declared wanted over his alleged role in kidnapping operations across Kogi and the FCT.
A senior security source confirmed Galadi’s arrest, stating that the DSS was intensifying covert operations to dismantle kidnapping and banditry networks across the country.
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