Troops assume custody of suspected deserter after police arrest in Plateau.

Troops from Operation Enduring Peace have taken custody of a suspected deserter from the Nigerian Army.

Police arrested the suspect during a raid in Pankshin Local Government Area, Plateau State.

The information was released in a post on X on Friday by Zagazola Makama, a security and counter‑insurgency expert in the Lake Chad region.

Makama, citing intelligence sources, said the soldier—identified as Yakubu Bilal—was taken into custody by Keystone Police Division officers during a Wednesday raid in Pankshin.

After the arrest, troops from Sector 8 of Operation Enduring Peace moved to the police station and assumed custody of the suspect for a further military investigation.

Preliminary investigations indicate that the soldier allegedly deserted his unit, the 24 Task Force Brigade, in 2024 and has been absent without official authorization since.

Military sources said they have contacted the soldier’s parent unit to facilitate the required administrative and disciplinary procedures.

The suspect is currently held at the Headquarters of Sector 8, Operation Enduring Peace, in Mangu, where the investigation continues.