JUST IN: Three suspects in Oyo schoolchildren kidnap plead guilty, bag life sentences

A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced three suspects linked to the abduction of schoolchildren and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State to life imprisonment after they pleaded guilty to terrorism-related offences.

Justice Salim Ibrahim delivered the judgment against the three convicts—Abdulrazak Umar (also known as Abu Khalifa/Abu Khalid), Yunusa Musa (also known as Yunusa Bin Musa), and Shamsu Adamu Sani (also known as Abu Itisar)—ordering that their sentences take effect from the date of their arrest.

The trio was prosecuted by the Department of State Services (DSS) on a 10-count charge bordering on terrorism, kidnapping, concealment of information, and related offences.

Before sentencing, defence counsel urged the court to temper justice with mercy, arguing that the defendants were first-time offenders who had voluntarily pleaded guilty, demonstrating remorse.

The lawyer further told the court that the convicts were married with children and had elderly parents who depended on them, pleading for leniency and an opportunity for rehabilitation.

He also contended that most of the charges were not directly tied to the actual kidnapping, urging the court to consider a lighter sentence.

However, the prosecution opposed the plea, maintaining that the defendants deliberately concealed critical information about terrorist activities despite having full knowledge of those involved.

The prosecutor argued that, as citizens, the convicts had a responsibility to report such information to security agencies rather than shield those responsible.

Upon the reading of the charges, all three defendants pleaded guilty to membership of a proscribed terrorist organisation and to concealing information related to the planning and execution of the Oriire abduction.

Additionally, the first defendant, Abdulrazak Umar, pleaded guilty to Counts 7 to 10, which included receiving terrorist training, issuing operational instructions, and inciting members of a terrorist group through the promotion of a particular ideology.

According to the charge sheet, the defendants—natives of Niger State—knowingly withheld intelligence on individuals involved in terrorist activities, participated in kidnapping operations, and used a messaging platform to coordinate and facilitate terrorist training.

After considering their guilty pleas, the court convicted the defendants and sentenced them to life imprisonment.