The home of Malam Tukur Mamu, publisher of the Kaduna-based Desert Herald and media adviser to controversial Islamic cleric Sheikh Ahmad Gumi, who withdrew as one of the negotiators between the terrorists who attacked the Abuja-Kaduna bound AK-9 train passengers on March 28, was raided by a team from the Department of State Service.
According to a source with knowledge of the situation, the highly armed DSS agents attacked Mamu’s home and the office of the Desert Herald Newspaper at around 12:30 am on Thursday. It was reported that the authorities searched every crevice of the home and removed laptops, phones, and papers.
However, according to the sources, neither the workplace nor the home had anything that might be used as evidence. He claims that both the home and the workplace were raided by at least 50 heavily armed agents traveling in military trucks, Toyota Hilux, and Highlander. The two wives of the former negotiator, who were present when he was arrested, were returned to the home, but his two boys “are still with him in jail,” the source continued. Tuesday saw the arrest of Mamu in Cairo, the Egyptian capital.
The negotiator for the terrorists is rumored to have been detained in Egypt together with his family. The negotiator had allegedly been arrested, according to the DSS. Mamu was reportedly stopped at the Cairo International Airport while en route to Saudi Arabia for the smaller Hajj. The management of the Desert Herald Newspaper confirmed the arrest and said that it was an attempt to intimidate the publication’s publisher.
