The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Monday ordered the remand of four suspected bandits linked to the notorious terrorist kingpin, Bello Turji, in Kuje Correctional Centre.
The trial judge, Justice Emeka Nwite, issued the remand order after the alleged bandits took their pleas.
All four defendants present in court pleaded not guilty to the charges read to them in both English and Hausa, as one of the defendants, Hashimu (a.k.a. Doctor), informed the court that he did not understand English.
The defendants are facing trial on an 11-count charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/633/2024, bordering on terrorism, brought against them by the Attorney General of the Federation.
The charge, dated and filed on 16 December by M.B. Abubakar, Director of the Department of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, lists Musa Kamarawa, Abubakar Hashimu (a.k.a. Doctor), Bashir Abdullahi, Samuel Chinedu, and Lucky Chukwuma as the 1st to 5th defendants.
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Bello Turji, Aminu Muhammad, and Sani Lawal are named as the 6th, 7th, and 8th defendants, respectively, but were noted to be at large.
The defendants, as alleged by the prosecution, conspired to commit acts of terrorism in Sokoto State between 2018 and 2022.
They are accused of providing material support to terrorist groups led by Bello Turji and others by supplying items such as illicit drugs, military and police uniforms, food, and building materials for terrorist camps in Zamfara, Sokoto, and Kaduna states.
In 2021, the defendants, including two who are at large, allegedly facilitated the purchase of a military gun truck from Libya for N28.5 million, which was then supplied to a terrorist leader, Kachalla Halilu.
The prosecuting counsel alleged that the defendants were aware that the vehicle would be used for acts of terrorism.
The offences are said to contravene Sections 17 and 18(a) of the Terrorism (Prevention) (Amendment) Act, 2013, and are punishable under the same sections.
After the defendants entered their pleas, A.I. Mohammed, counsel to the fifth defendant (Chukwuma), requested a short adjournment to file a bail application.
Justice Nwite noted the request and adjourned the case to 10 February for trial.
Of the eight defendants mentioned in the charge, three, including Bello Turji, were confirmed to be at large.
When asked about the absence of the third defendant, Bashir Abdullahi, the AGF’s counsel, David Kaswe, clarified that Abdullahi was also at large and apologised for omitting this fact in the initial submission.
The court granted his oral application to amend the charge accordingly.
Before the charges were read, A.M. Lukman, counsel for the 1st, 2nd, and 4th defendants, informed the court of a preliminary objection regarding the court’s territorial jurisdiction.
However, Justice Nwite ruled that the objection was not ripe for hearing as the prosecution had just been served the application
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