The Federal Government has approved the deployment of an Air Force jet to assist the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) in beefing up security along the Abuja-Kaduna rail line.
This followed an alert by the Department of State Service (DSS) of a possible attack by terrorists.
Sources said yesterday that the jet deployment was one of the pre-emptive measures taken by the authorities to prevent a reoccurrence of the 28 March 2022 terrorists’ attack on an Abuja–Kaduna train in Katari, Kaduna State.
It was also gathered that the DSS has arrested some staff of the NRC in connection with the leakage of its 11th August 2023 letter to the Managing Director of the corporation in which the security agency advised the NRC to beef up security in and around the stations.
In the letter signed by R.N Dopemu for the State Director of Security FCT Command, the DSS said “Intelligence report indicates impending threat to seamless train transportation along the Abuja – Kaduna Train Service (AKTS).
“The development is sequel to the plot by a coalition of banditry syndicate to attack Abuja-Kaduna Train Service aimed at kidnapping passengers on board for ransom any moment from now.”
Operatives of the DSS were said to have gone to the Idu train station, Abuja on Thursday to effect the arrest of NRC staff suspected to have leaked the letter.
It was gathered that following media reports of the alleged planned attack, the NRC recorded comparatively low turnout of passengers on the route on Wednesday and Thursday but the situation reportedly improved yesterday.
One source said: “The DSS is arresting some people because of the leaked information. The DSS officials were at the Idu station to arrest some of the staff of the Abuja-Kaduna Train Service for the purpose of investigation to know who actually released the letter because with such leakage, there is bound to be panic in the country and possibly reduce the rate of patronage of the train service.
“The letter was not meant to be in the public domain but we have found ourselves in a country where some people don’t know how to manage information.”
On the turnout of passengers following the leaked letter, he said: “There was little tension on Wednesday and Thursday but I think the tension has reduced because today (Friday), the tickets finished at our Idu station.”
