Banditry Allegations: Hassan, Senator Give Conflicting Accounts Over Dogo Gide

Fresh controversy has emerged over alleged connections between political figures and criminal networks in northern Nigeria after a man identified as Hassan named a senator in claims he had previously made without identifying the politician.

Hassan said his childhood friendship with notorious bandit leader Dogo Gide gave him access to people associated with the kingpin, while insisting that he himself was never involved in criminal activities.

He explained that he and Gide grew up in the same community and became friends as children before their lives took different directions.

The senator has rejected the allegations, describing them as damaging claims and challenging Hassan to provide evidence to security authorities.

The lawmaker said security agencies had already received complaints concerning the allegations, adding that investigations had led to arrests and that the matter is currently before the court.

‘We Were Childhood Friends’

Hassan said he eventually relocated to Rivers State, where he was raised and educated, while Gide remained in the North and later became involved in banditry.

He claimed their childhood connection became important years later when he encountered Gide again in circumstances linked to his work at the senator’s residence.

According to Hassan, his educational background allowed him to monitor and document activities around the residence which he considered suspicious.

He alleged that he began secretly recording activities and preserving information he believed could expose people connected to criminal operations.

Hassan said his knowledge of some people allegedly involved in banditry stemmed from knowing them before they became criminals.

“I know Dogo Gide very well because we grew up in the same community and were childhood friends,” Hassan said in the interview widely circulated on social media.

He alleged that Gide had little formal education and struggled to operate a mobile phone, which Hassan claimed enabled him to obtain recordings and save them on a memory card.

According to Hassan, his activities were eventually discovered at the senator’s residence, after which he alleged that an order was given for him to be killed.

He claimed Gide secretly alerted him to the alleged threat, despite their different paths, allowing him to escape.

Hassan said he subsequently left Nigeria with materials he believed contained evidence of what he had witnessed. He added that some of the materials were lost during his escape.

Senator’s Counter-Account

The senator has categorically denied the allegations.

Speaking to a radio station, he said Hassan came into his orbit after being introduced to his foundation as an orphan in need of educational assistance.

The lawmaker said he helped finance Hassan’s education and facilitated his access to both conventional and Islamic education.

He said the relationship later became strained after Hassan abandoned his education and decided to go into car dealing.

The senator also alleged that Hassan secretly photographed and recorded people visiting his residence before their relationship deteriorated.

He denied having any connection with banditry and challenged Hassan to take his evidence to the appropriate security agencies.

The senator said complaints had been made to security authorities and that investigations resulted in arrests, with the matter now before the court.

Hassan’s latest claims followed his decision to identify the senator as the unnamed politician he had previously accused.

He also alleged that people associated with Dogo Gide were brought to Abuja and suggested that individuals around the senator were connected to the development.

Dogo Gide’s Security Profile

Dogo Gide is a known figure in Nigeria’s fight against banditry.

Vanguard reported in May 2021 that Mallam Dogo Gide was among the leaders of bandit groups operating in parts of Niger and Kaduna states.

The Nigeria Police also reported in October 2023 that a suspect arrested in connection with the abduction of students of Federal Government College, Yauri, confessed to participating in the operation alongside Kachala Dogo Gide. Police described Gide as a gang leader who led about 100 men during the raid.

The allegations have once again drawn attention to the possibility of longstanding community relationships overlapping with criminal networks, particularly where individuals knew one another before some became involved in armed crime.

Nevertheless, the allegations against the senator remain unproven in court based on available reports.

The senator has maintained that Hassan’s claims are designed to damage his reputation and political career, while insisting that any purported evidence should be handed over to security agencies for investigation.

The dispute therefore remains unresolved, with Hassan presenting his alleged access to Dogo Gide’s network as the basis for his claims, while the senator portrays Hassan as a former beneficiary of his educational assistance whose relationship with him later collapsed.

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