The Department of State Services (DSS) will on Thursday re-arraign five suspected members of the Ansaru terrorist group over their alleged involvement in the abduction of pupils and teachers in Oriire LGA, Ogbomoso, Oyo state.
The five men are facing a six-count amended charge marked
FHC/ABJ/CR/438/2026, filed by Rotimi Oyedepo, director of public prosecutions
of the federation (DPPF), on behalf of the federal government.
The defendants are Mahmud Muhammad, also known as Abu Bara’a
and Abbas Mukhtar; Abubakar Abbas, also known as Isah Adam and Mahmuda
Al-Nigeri; Abdulrazak Umar, also known as Abu Khalifa and Abu Khalid; Yunusa
Musa, also known as Abu Yunusa bin Musa; and Shamsu Sani, also known as Abu
Itisar.
The federal government accused the men of being members of
Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina fi-Biladis Sudan (Ansaru), a terrorist group.
The case was scheduled for re-arraignment before Salim
Ibrahim, judge of the federal high court in Abuja, on Wednesday but was
adjourned until Thursday after the defendants requested to be represented by a
lawyer of their choice.
At the proceedings, Akilaluyel Shettima, deputy director at
the Legal Aid Council, announced his appearance for the five defendants.
However, Mahmud, the first defendant, objected to the
representation.
Speaking on behalf of the other defendants, Mahmud told the
court that they had previously been represented by Bala Dakum and wanted him to
continue as their counsel.
The DPPF conceded that the defendants’ choice of counsel was
a constitutional matter that should be respected.
He also told the court that the DSS is a law-abiding
institution interested in justice and not the persecution of the defendants.
The judge subsequently adjourned the matter until Thursday
for re-arraignment and directed the defendants to contact Dakum and ensure that
he is present in court for the proceedings.
He also directed the DSS to allow the defendants to have
access to their counsel to enable them to prepare their defence.
On May 15, gunmen attacked three schools in Oriire LGA and
abducted 39 pupils and seven teachers, including the principal of one of the
affected schools. Two people were killed during the attack.
Days later, the abductors killed Michael Oyedokun, one of
the abducted teachers, while in captivity.
On July 10, federal government announced that all the
abductees had been rescued following a joint security operation.
Advertise on NigerianEye.com to reach thousands of our daily users
No comments
Post a Comment
Kindly drop a comment below.
(Comments are moderated. Clean comments will be approved immediately)
Advert Enquires - Reach out to us at NigerianEye@gmail.com