Amigo Supermarket/Abuja Wonderland Park Lebanese Owner Arrested Over Huge Armoury In Kano

Security agents are holding an Abuja businessman in whose home a catche of arms has been found hidden in a bunker.

Mustapha Fawaz is the co-owner of the popular Amigo Supermarket and Wonderland Amusement Park – both in Abuja.

Security operatives named the three Lebanese suspects yesterday.

The assorted firearms were neatly concealed inside coolers and packed inside a bunker in a bungalow on Gaya Road, Bompai, Kano.

The cache of arms was linked to the terrorist group, Hezbollah.

Hezbollah is a Shi’a Islamic militant group and political party based in Lebanon.

The Commander of 3 Brigade of the Nigerian Army, Brig.–Gen. Ilyasu Abbah, who spoke to reporters at the site where the arms were discovered, named the suspects as: Abdallah Hassan Fadallah, Mustapher Fawaz and Abdullahi Tigani. They have been moved to Abuja for further investigation.

The army chief recalled that one of the suspects, who he described as an Abuja businessman, was once arrested at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport for undeclared $60,000 found on him. He was on his way to Lebanon.

Brig.-Gen. Abba said the assorted weapons found in the home of the suspects were linked with the Lebanese-based Hezbollah.

The suspects were quoted as saying that the weapons were meant to fight Israeli and Western interests in Nigeria.

“Even if they were meant to fight Israeli and Western interests in the country as they claimed, are Nigerians not working in those organisations? “Gen. Abbah queried.

He also noted that the building of a bunker inside a building to conceal weapons confirms the suspects’ ulterior motive. Bassey Etang, Director of State Security Service (SSS) in Kano, said: “We cannot say how long the weapons have been in the bunker. The rust you see is as a result of the conditions they have been exposed to, but they are still serviceable. Again, we cannot link them with Boko Haram, until the conclusion of investigation, but we suspect such group, like Hezbollah, can have links with Boko Haram.”

Some of the items recovered from the bunker are: 17 AK 47 riffles, 11,433 bullets, 76 military grenades, one Rocket Propeller Grenade (RPG2), 21 RPG bombs, nine pistols and 103 PMT Slap – all concealed inside coolers.

Narrating how the discovery was carried out, Gen. Abbah said: “On 28 May, a combined team of the JTF involving the NA of the 3 Brigade here in Kano and the Kano State DSS conducted a thorough search of this house located at No 3, Gaya Road, off Bompai Road, Kano belonging to one Abdul Hassan Taher Fadlalla, a Lebanese national who is currently out of the country.

After a painstaking search of the premises, the search team uncovered an underground bunker in the master bedroom where a large quantity of assorted weapons of different types and calibre were recovered.

“The bunker was specially constructed for this purpose. It is worth mentioning that the arms include anti-tank weapons, rocket propelled guns, anti-tank/anti-personnel mines, among other dangerous weapons. All the weapons and ammunition recovered were properly concealed with several layers of concrete and placed in coolers, drums and bags neatly wrapped.

“These discoveries were not accidental, but the outcome of an ongoing robust counter terrorism investigation by the Department of State Security Services, Abuja in the past several months.

“The investigation also confirms the existence of a Hezbollah Foreign terrorist cell in Nigeria. Consequently, the DSS on 16 May, 2013 arrested one Mustapha Fawaz, the co-owner of the popular Amigo Supermarket, as well as the Wonderland Amusement Park, all in Abuja.

“Thus, his arrest and confession unveiled other members of the foreign terrorist network which led to the interception of one member of the syndicate named Abdullah Tahini, a Lebanese national, at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport with undeclared amount of 60,000 United States dollars on him enroute Beirut. Thereafter on 26 May, 2013, one Talal Roda, also a Lebanese with Nigerian passport, was arrested in this same house.

“All those arrested have confessed to have undergone Hezbollah terrorist training and further implicated one Fauzi Fawad, also a co-owner of Amigo Supermarket and Wonderland Amusement Park. However, the fellow is now at large. The arms and ammunition were targeted at facilities of Israel and Western interest in Nigeria. The security agencies are making frantic efforts to unveil the true situation. At the end of investigation, all those involved will be prosecuted.”