The Nigerian Army says troops of One Division deployed for ‘Operation Whirl Punch’ have arrested three suspected gunrunners and recovered a large cache of arms from them in Niger State.

A spokesman for the One Division, Colonel Muhammad Dole, in a statement on Wednesday said the suspects were apprehended during a stop and search operation at Rijau village.

According to Dole, 44 locally-made single barrel rifles and 351 cartridges were seized while being conveyed in a car to Bena Village in Danko/Wasagu Local Government Area of Kebbi State, which shares a boundary with Zamfara State.

The arrest comes less than a month after troops arrested a suspected gunrunner in possession of 36 rifles and 343 rounds of ammunition as he was also heading to Zamfara State.

There are concerns that such arms and ammunition are being used to fuel the attacks by bandits and cattle rustlers in Zamfara State and its environ.

As part of efforts to curb the menace, the police claimed that recently they killed over 100 bandits in the state.