The Benue State Police Command has arrested ten suspects in connection with the brutal killing of Alhaji Ardo Risku Mohammed, the Benue State Chairman of the Miyetti Allah Cattle Breeders Association of Nigeria (MACBAN), and one Yakubu Isa.
The arrests, carried out under the cover of darkness in Otukpo on the night of Friday, June 27, 2026, were the product of what police described as intensive intelligence gathering and coordinated tactical operations, a methodical dragnet that closed in on the suspects just 24 hours before this report was filed.
Police have identified the ten men in custody as Titus Thyodenda, 25; Utibe Sam, 20; Owoicho Ameh, 18; Sunday Useni, 21; Sunday Ogbanje, 46; Daniel Raphael, 23; Adokole John, 24; Samuel Ogazi, 32; Agbo Daniel, 25; and Onazi James, 30. They range in age from 18 to 46, a cross-section that investigators are likely scrutinizing for evidence of an organized network behind the killings.
The announcement was made public on Saturday morning through a formal statement issued by the Command’s Police Public Relations Officer, Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) Udeme Edet, who described the arrests as a “significant breakthrough” in an investigation that has gripped the state since the killings were first reported.
The slaying of Alhaji Ardo Risku Mohammed sent shockwaves well beyond Benue State’s borders. As the MACBAN chairman, Mohammed was not merely a community figurehead; he occupied a particularly sensitive position in a state long scarred by the volatile and often deadly tensions between herders and farming communities.
His death, alongside that of Yakubu Isa, was swiftly condemned by the Command, which at the time described the attack as “unfortunate” and vowed that justice would be served.
That vow, it appears, is now being put into action.
Commissioner of Police Cletus C.N. Nwadiogbu, the helmsman of the Benue State Command, did not mince words in his assessment of the operation. In the statement released Saturday, he commended the tactical teams and investigators for what he called their “swift response and professionalism,” framing the arrests as a major step on the road to justice.
But CP Nwadiogbu was equally candid that the work is far from over. He confirmed that investigations remain active and ongoing, and that efforts have been intensified to track down others believed to be connected to the killings.
“The Benue State Police Command remains resolute in its commitment to protecting lives and property while sustaining peace and security across the state,” the statement read, a message that carries particular weight in Benue, a state that has endured years of security crises.
The commissioner further pledged that all individuals found culpable would face prosecution in full accordance with the law, a firm reassurance to a community anxious for accountability.
Beyond the law enforcement operation itself, CP Nwadiogbu used Saturday’s statement to appeal directly to Benue residents, urging them to remain calm and to continue cooperating with security agencies.
Crucially, he called on members of the public to come forward with credible information that could assist investigators, an acknowledgement that, despite the arrests, the full picture of what happened to Mohammed and Isa may still be incomplete.
It is a delicate appeal in a state where community trust in security institutions has, at times, been strained.
With ten suspects now in custody and investigators still combing for additional links to the case, attention turns to the interrogation process and what evidence police have assembled to connect these individuals to the killings.
Prosecutors and human rights observers will be watching closely to ensure that due process is followed, particularly given the high-profile and politically sensitive nature of the case.
For the residents of Benue State, and for the wider herding and farming communities whose fragile coexistence so often hangs in the balance, justice for Alhaji Ardo Risku Mohammed and Yakubu Isa cannot come too soon.
WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW
Ten suspects have been arrested in connection with the killing of MACBAN’s Benue State Chairman, Alhaji Ardo Risku Mohammed, and Yakubu Isa, following a night operation in Otukpo on June 27, 2026.
