The Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced three men linked to the abduction of students and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State to life imprisonment.
Delivering judgment, Justice Salim Ibrahim ordered that the life sentences imposed on Abdulrazak Umar, also known as Abu Khalifa/Abu Khalid, Yunusa Musa (Yunusa Bin Musa), and Shamsu Adamu Sani (Abu Itisar) should take effect from the date of their arrest.
Before sentencing, counsel to the defendants pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy, arguing that they were first-time offenders who had pleaded guilty, shown remorse, and had wives, children, and elderly parents depending on them.
The prosecution, however, opposed the request for leniency, insisting that the convicts knowingly concealed information about terrorist activities and failed to notify security agencies despite being aware of the planned attack.
The three men pleaded guilty to belonging to a proscribed terrorist group and concealing information relating to the planning and execution of the school abduction.
Abdulrazak Umar also pleaded guilty to four additional counts involving terrorist training, passing operational instructions, and inciting members of the terrorist group through extremist religious ideology.
The Department of State Services (DSS) had arraigned the suspects on a 10-count charge bordering on kidnapping, terrorism-related offences, and concealment of information.
According to the charges, the trio, all from Niger State, knowingly withheld intelligence about terrorist activities, participated in kidnapping operations, and used a messaging platform to facilitate terrorist training and coordination.