A joint operation by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) and the military in Niger State has resulted in the neutralising of scores of heavily armed bandits believed to be loyal to terrorist kingpins Dogo Gide and Leyi, The Nation gathered on Thursday.

Security sources disclosed that the operation began on Tuesday when the terrorists stormed Chibani village in Munya Local Government Area (LGA) of the state.

They reportedly killed one Ayuba Isah and left two other persons, one policeman, and one Alhaji Shuaibu, with gunshot wounds.

On Wednesday, bandits said to be numbering over 200, brandishing sophisticated weapons, stormed a security base in Kuchi, a town in Munya LGA.

According to the source, the fierce gun battle that ensued led to the neutralizing of scores of the bandits, with many others fleeing with various degree of injuries.

The security source listed re-enforcement from Galadima Kogo to Kuchi as a major factor that helped weaken the bandits.

Another security source later claimed seeing large herds of cattle, believed to have been rustled, crossing the Kusasu river in Galadima Kogo District, Shiroro LGA, advancing towards a place believed to be their hideout in Borisudna/Kwaki axis in the same Shiroro.

The source said DSS operatives and soldiers of the Nigerian Army in the area had contacted the Nigeria Air Force for aerial support, and expressed optimism that the Air Force would be able to smoke out the remainder of the fleeing bandits. (The Nation)