The Department of State Services (DSS) has vowed to challenge the life imprisonment handed to three men convicted over the abduction of school pupils and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, insisting that the punishment is too lenient for the gravity of their crimes.
The secret police announced that it would file an appeal, arguing that the convicts deserved the death penalty, particularly because the kidnapping operation allegedly led to the beheading of two teachers.
According to the DSS, such an act amounts to a capital offence under Nigerian law and should attract the highest punishment available.
The development follows Thursday’s judgment by Justice Salim Ibrahim, who sentenced the three defendants to life imprisonment after they pleaded guilty to several terrorism-related offences, including membership of Darul Salam, an affiliate of the Ansaru terrorist organisation, concealment of information relating to kidnapping and promoting extremist ideology.
The convicted men were identified as Abdulrazak Umar, also known as Abu Khalifa or Abu Khalid, Yunusa Musa, also known as Yunusa Bin Musa, and Shamsu Adamu Sani, also known as Abu Itisar.
Court records showed that Abdulrazak Umar admitted guilt to multiple counts involving the training and indoctrination of terrorist group members using religious ideology to encourage extremist activities.
The trio had been prosecuted on a 10-count charge filed by the DSS, bordering on kidnapping, terrorism-related offences, concealment of information and the use of digital communication platforms to facilitate terrorist training, contrary to the provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
Justice Ibrahim sentenced all three defendants to life imprisonment on Count 6, while Abdulrazak Umar received additional life sentences on several other terrorism-related counts.
The case comes barely a week after a Federal High Court in Abuja sentenced two senior commanders of the Ansaru terrorist group, Mahmud Muhammad Usman (Abu Bara’a) and Mahmud al-Nigeri (Mallam Mamuda), to life imprisonment over terrorism offences.
With the DSS now seeking a stiffer punishment, the case is expected to proceed to the appellate court, where judges will determine whether the life sentences should be replaced with the death penalty.
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