The Department of State Services (DSS) will appeal Monday’s life sentence imposed on two top commanders of the Ansaru terror organisation by a Federal High Court, Abuja.
Justice Emeka Nwite had sentenced Mahmud Usman, a.k.a Abu Bara’a/Abbas/Mukhtar, the self-styled Emir of Ansaru; and Abubakar Abba, a.k.a Mahmud al-Nigeri/Malam Mamuda, to life shortly after they pleaded guilty to all the 32-count charges against them.
Abu Bara (Usman) was described as the “coordinator of terrorist sleeper cells across Nigeria and the mastermind of several high-profile kidnappings and armed robberies used to fund terrorism.”
His deputy, Malam Mamuda (Abba), was said to have trained in Libya between 2013 and 2015 under foreign jihadist instructors from Egypt, Tunisia, and Algeria, specialising in weapons handling and IED fabrication.
The convicts, in the charge, allegedly attacked the Nigerian Army’s Wawa Cantonment in Kainji, Niger State, in 2022, causing mass casualties.
The convicts were also charged for the 2013 abduction of French engineer Francis Collomp in Katsina State, the 2019 kidnapping of Musa Uba (Magajin Garin Daura), and the abduction of the Emir of Wawa.
Meanwhile, the Department of State Services (DSS) has said it will appeal Monday’s life sentences for two top commanders of the Ansaru Terror organisation by a Federal High Court, Abuja.
Reacting, a top official of the service told newsmen that they considered the life sentence as too light a punishment for the crimes allegedly committed by the Ansaru commanders.
The official said the service found it curious that, both convicts were on the verge of pleading guilty to the charges, but changed their minds shortly after some persons believed to be members of the same organisation kidnapped pupils and teachers in Oriire LGA in Oyo State.
“For the nearly 60 days the kidnappers held on to the pupils and teachers of Oriire, the Ansaru commanders in our custody changed.
“One of the top conditions the abductors gave was the unconditional release of these same Ansaru commanders in exchange for the Oriire kidnap victims,” he said.
According to him, from ‘not guilty plea,’ the two men at the penultimate court session, said they were undecided on what plea to take.
“Justice Nwite even had to hand them an ultimatum to make up their minds on or before Monday’s sitting. After the Oriire rescue, they came to court to plead guilty to all the charges,” he added.
The official said, “allowing the two terror commanders walk away with life sentences will not serve the cause of justice for the two Oriire teachers beheaded by their abductors.
“The reason the terrorists beheaded the two Oriire teachers was to put pressure on government to release these two Ansaru commanders.
“It, therefore, wouldn’t be fair to see two men beheaded and their families are made to live with the losses without adequately bringing the culprits to book,” he said.
