A Sokoto State High Court has sentenced three men, including a citizen of the Republic of Niger, to death by hanging after finding them guilty of terrorism-related offences and illegal arms trafficking.
The convicts, Yusuf Muhammad, also known as Sallau, a Nigerien national, Jabbi Alhaji Yalle, and Kabiru Muhammad, were prosecuted over their involvement in cross-border criminal activities linked to terrorism and the proliferation of illegal weapons.
The Department of State Services (DSS) Counter Terrorism Unit arrested the suspects on June 13, 2025, following intelligence-led operations targeting arms trafficking networks operating across Nigeria’s borders.
In a suit filed with SS/45C/2026, was heard before Justice Muhammad Nuraddeen Bello of High Court No. 23 in Sokoto.
Delivering judgment, Justice Bello held that the prosecution had successfully established its case against the defendants and consequently sentenced all three men to death by hanging.
The court also ordered that all funds and monetary exhibits recovered from the convicts during investigations be forfeited to the Federal Government.
Justice Bello described the conviction as part of ongoing efforts by security agencies to dismantle terrorism financing and arms-smuggling networks operating within and outside Nigeria.
“The conviction is the latest in a series of successful prosecutions by the DSS in its sustained operations against terrorism and organised cross-border criminal networks across Nigeria,” the judge stated.
The judgment comes barely two weeks after the Federal High Court in Abuja sentenced five terrorism suspects to 25 years imprisonment each for their roles in the November 21, 2025 attack on St. Mary’s Catholic School in Papiri, Niger State.
Justice Binta Nyako handed down the sentence after the defendants, including two Nigerien nationals, pleaded guilty to four terrorism-related charges brought against them by the Federal Government.
The charges were based on provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, and the Firearms Act.
According to court documents, the suspects conspired to support a terrorist operation by facilitating the transportation of 15 AK-103 rifles and approximately 1,434 rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition from the Diffa Region of the Republic of Niger to one Malam Ahmad, identified as a member of the Boko Haram terrorist group operating in Borgu, Niger State.
Prosecutors argued that the defendants knowingly participated in the movement of the weapons and ammunition, thereby providing material support to a terrorist organisation in violation of Nigerian anti-terrorism laws.
The DSS had arrested the suspects at different locations during coordinated security operations.