The identities of three suspected members of the kidnapping gang accused of abducting worshippers during an attack on St. Joseph’s Catholic Church, Inoyi-Affa, Udi Local Government Area of Enugu State, have been revealed following their arrest by security operatives.

The suspects were identified as Aliyu Mohammed, Usman Mohammed and Babuga Usman.

Meanwhile, Babuga Usman was killed during an alleged gun battle.

The three men were arrested during a joint security operation involving operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS), Nigerian Army and other security agencies following the August 2, 2026 attack on the Catholic church.

The operation also led to the recovery of four AK-47 rifles, seven magazines, 133 rounds of 7.62mm special ammunition, $1,000 and ₦785,900 allegedly belonging to the criminal syndicate.

Troops of the Nigerian Army and DSS operatives under Operation UDO KA had arrested a suspected commander of a notorious kidnapping syndicate in Enugu State and recovered a cache of arms, ammunition and cash.

Although, the military authority didn’t reveal the identity of the suspects in the statement, the arrest followed the abduction of worshippers in Udi Local Government Area on August 2.

In a statement issued on Monday, the Acting Deputy Director, Army Public Relations, 82 Division, Lieutenant Colonel Olabisi Olalekan Ayeni, said an earlier operation had resulted in the neutralisation of one member of the syndicate and the arrest of another suspect.

According to Ayeni, information obtained from the arrested suspect enabled security operatives to track the fleeing commander.

“Acting on the intelligence, troops intensified their manhunt and eventually tracked, intercepted, and arrested the syndicate commander as he attempted to flee Enugu State,” he said.

The arrested suspect subsequently led troops to the gang’s hidden armoury inside Umuchingu Ujenike Forest in Udi.

“During the follow-up operation, troops recovered four AK-47 rifles, seven AK-47 magazines, and 133 rounds of 7.62mm special ammunition from the forest hideout,” the Army said.

The military said preliminary investigations indicated that the arrested kingpin was linked to several high-profile kidnapping operations across the South-East and North-Central regions.

The development also comes after the remaining victims of the August 2 attack, including seminarian Lawrence Igbo and Emmanuel Onwudi, were rescued by security agencies.

The Enugu State government said all the kidnapped victims were recovered alive and without injuries.

Governor Peter Mbah, represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Prof Chidiebere Onyia, had disclosed this while parading the arrested suspects at the DSS office in Enugu on Monday night.

Onyia said the victims had identified the arrested suspects as the men responsible for their abduction, but didn’t disclosed their identities.

He also disclosed that ransom was paid during the rescue operation but insisted that the money was used as bait as part of a broader strategy to track the kidnappers.

“The kidnapped victims were all recovered and they have been returned safe. None of them lost their lives or were harmed,” Onyia said.

According to him, the security agencies prioritised the safety of the victims throughout the operation.

“Part of what was used was the ransom amount as bait, as part of our strategy. That was not the only strategy,” he said.

Onyia said all the ransom money paid had subsequently been recovered following the arrest of the suspects.

“So yes, ransoms were paid but they have all been recovered completely. They were used strictly as strategy and we have it and nobody was killed,” he said.

One of the suspected kidnappers was killed during a gun battle with security operatives, while the others were arrested.

“There was one fatality in this process. It was one of the criminals that died in the process of apprehending them,” Onyia said.

The state government warned other criminal groups operating in Enugu that security agencies would continue to pursue them.

The army also reaffirmed that intelligence-led operations would continue across the South-East to dismantle criminal networks and restore security in the region.