A military patrol team from the 20 Mechanised Battalion, Serti, operating in Mambilla, Taraba State, on Friday paraded six suspected cattle rustlers nabbed while sharing cow meat in Nyogor forest.

According to Lt. Col. Sani Adamu, the Commanding Officer of the Battalion, 30 cows were also recovered from the suspects who were paraded at Mayo-Ndaga, near Gembu, in Sardauna Local Government Area.

The suspects, all men, included Hammanjulde Yahya, 50, Umaru Yahya, 40, Paul Samuel, 35, Juli Adamu, 30, Ibrahim Yusufa, 27, and Usumanu Buba, 25.

He explained that the soldiers were on a patrol of the troubled area, where several people were killed and hundreds of cows stolen in early March, 2018, when they got a hint that the suspects were in the forest.

“When we entered the bush on Sunday, March 25, we caught them (suspects) sharing meat of the stolen cows in Nyogor forest.

“Further search into the deep forest led to the recovery of 30 stolen cows which have been handed over to community leaders in Mayo-Ndaga, for proper identification by their owners,” he said.

The commanding officer advised the people to live in peace, and implored those in possession of stolen cows to quietly return them to community leaders or security agents, and be pardoned.

“Those who refused to adhere to this advice should blame themselves for whatever happens to them when they are fished out,” he said.

Earlier, in an address of welcome, the Village Head of Mayo-Ndaga, Alhaji Auwalu Mansur, had told the officer that his subjects had not been able to recover cows stolen from them during the recent crisis.

The News Agency of Nigeria, reports that the suspects have been handed over to the Police Command in Taraba for further action.

(NAN)