Police Foil Railway Vandalism, Arrest Four Suspects With 70 Stolen Sleepers In Katsina

The Katsina State Police Command has arrested four suspected railway vandals and recovered 70 railway sleepers believed to have been stolen.

The suspects were apprehended on October 11, 2026, at about 12:30 a.m., when police operatives on routine stop-and-search duty along the Kurfi–Tsanni Village Road intercepted a white J5 vehicle.

The vehicle, driven by a 25-year-old man, was said to be carrying three other occupants.

A thorough search of the vehicle uncovered 70 railway sleepers carefully concealed behind 17 bags of animal feed in what investigators believe was an attempt to evade detection.

Police said preliminary investigations revealed that one of the suspects confessed to receiving the railway materials from a suspected supplier from Bauchi State, who is currently at large.

According to the police command, the stolen items were being transported for delivery to a man in Katsina.

It said that the four suspects are currently in police custody, while the operational vehicle, the recovered railway sleepers and the bags of animal feed used to conceal them have been secured as exhibits.

The Command said efforts are underway to apprehend the fleeing suspects and determine the exact location from which the railway infrastructure was vandalised, adding that investigations are ongoing.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Abubakar Sadiq, described the arrests as another breakthrough in the fight against crimes targeting critical national infrastructure.

Sadiq said the Commissioner of Police, CP Ali Umar Fage, reaffirmed the Command’s unwavering commitment to protecting critical national infrastructure and bringing perpetrators of vandalism to justice.

The PPRO said that the commissioner also appealed to residents to continue supporting security agencies with timely and credible information that will enable the police to prevent crime and swiftly apprehend criminal elements across the state.