A Federal High Court in Abuja has convicted and sentenced five men, including a Nigerien citizen, to 25 years imprisonment for involvement in terrorism-related activities.
The five – Yusuf Mohammed (aka Bature), Goni Ibrahim Bindi (aka Goni Mutuwa), Sani Tulur (aka Danladi), Mubarak Ibrahim and Musa Alhaji Adamu (aka Gado Banufe) – pleaded guilty to a four-count charge following their arraignment yesterday before Justice Binta Nyako by the Department of State Services (DSS).
The five men pleaded guilty to offences bordering on assisting a terrorist by agreeing to convey rifles; being found in possession of arms and ammunition while concealed; illegal possession and dealing in firearms, and concealment.
Following the defendants’ guilty pleas, the prosecution sought permission to tender items recovered from the defendants.
With the court’s permission, the prosecution tendered a forwarding letter, accompanied with the investigation report and the statements of the defendants.
The prosecution also tendered 15 units of AK 103 rifles, complete with their magazines and 1,434 rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition, to which the defence did not object.
Justice Nyako admitted the items and convicted the defendants, after which the judge requested that each defendant make a plea of allocutus, which they did.
The prosecution applied that a Volkswagen car, used in conveying the arms and ammunition, be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
In her judgment, Justice Nyako found the defendants guilty as charged and convicted them.
The judge sentenced each of the five convicts to 25 years on count one. On counts two and three, she sentenced the third, fourth, and fifth convicts to seven years, while on count four, only the first defendant got 25 years.
According to the trial judge, the sentences are to run concurrently, beginning from the date of the arrest.
Justice Nyako ordered that the convicts should serve their terms of improvement in a place designated by the Minister of Interior.
The judge ordered that the exhibits be forfeited to the Federal Government.
Counts in the charge against the defendants read:
*Theat you Yusuf Muhammad (aka Bature), adult, male, 33 years old of Gofanti village, Borgu Loca Government Area, Niger State; Goni Ibrahim Bindi (aka Goni Mutua), adult, male, 23 years old of Awadiri, Diffa Region, Republic of Niger; Sani Tukur (aka Danladi), adult, 25 years old of Sansani Displaced Persons Camp, Diffa Region, Republic of Niger; Mubarak Ibrahim, adult, 28 years old of Gofanti village, Borgu LGA of Niger State, and Musa Alhaji Adamu (aka Gado Banufe) between April 23 and 24, 2026, did commit an offence, to wit: jointly conspired to assist a terrorist by agreeing and intentionally playing various roles towards conveying 15 AK 103 rifles as well as about 1,434 rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition from Diffa Region, Republic of Niger to Malam Ahmad, a member of the Boko Haram terrorist group based in Borgu LGA of Niger State, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 26(1) of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
