The Police Command in Zamfara says it is in pursuit of some foreign nationals allegedly involved in illegal mining in the state.
The state Police Command Public Relations Officer, SP Shehu Mohammed, disclosed this in a statement made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Gusau.
This followed a raid of the mining sites in Bukkuyum Local Government Area of the state, the spokesman said.
Mohammed said the raid, which was led by the state Commissioner of Police, Mr Usman Nagogo, led to the recovery of some mining tools allegedly used in the illegal activities.
“The mining sites were raided following an intelligence report that illegal miners were still operating at the site, despite several warnings by the Police.
“Two labourers, Hamisu Umar and Dahiru Mohammed, were arrested at the site, while others escaped into the forest.
“One of the suspects, Hamisu Umar confirmed the presence of foreign nationals, including Chinese, Koreans and Burkinabes, working in collaboration with Nigerians, but they were not met during the raid.
“However, the suspects are assisting the police with vital information that could lead to the arrest of their leaders,” he said.
The PPRO said that a combined team of Police Mobile and Counter Terrorism Unit have been deployed to takeover the site to forestall further illegal mining activities.