A High Court sitting in Sokoto State has sentenced three men, including a foreign national, to death by hanging for terrorism and illegal arms trafficking.
The convicts — Yusuf Muhammad, also known as Sallau, a Nigerien; Jabbi Alhaji Yalle; and Kabiru Muhammad — were found guilty of charges bordering on terrorism and proliferation of arms.
They were arrested on June 13, 2025, by operatives of the Department of State Services’ Counter Terrorism Unit over their involvement in cross-border criminal activities.
Delivering judgment in the case marked SS/45c/2026, Justice Muhammad Nuraddeen Bello of High Court No. 23, Sokoto, held that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and consequently sentenced the trio to death by hanging.
The court also ordered the forfeiture of all monetary exhibits recovered from the convicts to the Federal Government.
Justice Bello described the conviction as part of ongoing efforts by security agencies to dismantle terrorism networks and curb organised cross-border crimes.
The judgment comes barely two weeks after a Federal High Court in Abuja sentenced five suspects to 25 years’ imprisonment each for their roles in the November 21, 2025, attack on St. Mary’s Catholic School, Papiri, in Niger State.
Trial judge, Justice Binta Nyako, had convicted the suspects — including two Nigeriens — after they pleaded guilty to terrorism-related charges.
The offences included providing support for acts of terrorism, contrary to provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, and the Firearms Act.
Court documents revealed that the convicts conspired to supply 15 AK-103 rifles and about 1,434 rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition from the Diffa region of the Republic of Niger to a suspected Boko Haram member in Borgu, Niger State.
Security operatives arrested the suspects at different locations during coordinated operations.
The latest convictions underscore intensified efforts by authorities to combat terrorism and disrupt arms trafficking networks across Nigeria’s borders.
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