The Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced three men to life imprisonment for their roles in the abduction of students and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, bringing a major legal milestone in the prosecution of those linked to the incident.
Delivering judgment, Justice Salim Ibrahim ordered that the life sentences imposed on Abdulrazak Umar (also known as Abu Khalifa or Abu Khalid), Yunusa Musa (also known as Yunusa Bin Musa), and Shamsu Adamu Sani (also known as Abu Itisar) should take effect from the date of their arrest.
Before sentencing, counsel for the convicts appealed to the court for mercy, describing them as first-time offenders who pleaded guilty and expressed remorse for their actions. He argued that the offences to which they admitted did not amount to direct participation in the actual kidnapping.
The defence also informed the court that the convicts were family men with wives, children and elderly parents who depended on them, urging the court to impose lighter sentences and grant them an opportunity for rehabilitation.
However, the prosecution opposed the plea, insisting that the defendants knowingly concealed information about terrorist activities and failed in their civic responsibility to alert security agencies despite being aware of the planned criminal operations.
The three men pleaded guilty to membership of a proscribed terrorist organisation and to concealing information relating to the planning and execution of the school abduction in Oriire.
Abdulrazak Umar, the first defendant, also admitted to four additional counts, including providing terrorist training, transmitting operational instructions and inciting members of a terrorist group through the dissemination of extremist religious ideology.
The Department of State Services (DSS) had arraigned the defendants on a 10-count charge bordering on terrorism, kidnapping and concealment of information.
According to the prosecution, the three suspects, all natives of Niger State, knowingly withheld intelligence on terrorist activities, played roles connected with the kidnapping operation, and used a messaging platform to facilitate terrorist training and coordinate related activities.
The life sentences underscore the Federal Government’s continued efforts to prosecute individuals linked to terrorism and school abductions, while reinforcing the judiciary’s commitment to holding those who aid or support terrorist operations accountable under the law.
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