The Department of State Services (DSS) has said it will appeal the life imprisonment handed down to three men convicted over their alleged involvement in the abduction of school pupils and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The secret police said it was dissatisfied with the judgment, arguing that the punishment imposed on the convicts did not match the seriousness of the offences committed.
According to the DSS, the killing of two teachers by members of the terrorist group linked to the abduction amounted to a capital offence and should attract the death penalty.
The three men sentenced to life imprisonment are 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.
The DSS said it would challenge the judgment at the appropriate court, insisting that the circumstances surrounding the case warranted a harsher punishment.
The agency’s position followed a judgment delivered by Justice Salim Ibrahim of the Federal High Court in Abuja, who sentenced the three men to life imprisonment after they pleaded guilty to terrorism-related offences.
The defendants reportedly pleaded guilty to belonging to Darul Salam, an affiliate of the Ansaru terrorist organisation, as well as concealing information relating to the kidnapping.
They also admitted to offences involving incitement through religious ideology.
However, Umar was the only one of the three who pleaded guilty to counts seven, eight, nine and 10.
The charges against him included allegations of receiving training, passing instructions and inciting members of the terrorist group based on a particular religious ideology.
The three men were prosecuted by the DSS on a 10-count charge bordering on kidnapping, concealment of information and other terrorism-related offences.
The charges were filed under Section 16(1) of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
DSS Cites Killing Of Two Teachers
The secret police based its argument for a stiffer punishment on the alleged killing of two teachers by members of the terrorist group connected to the abduction.
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According to the agency, the beheading of the teachers was a capital offence and should therefore attract the death penalty.
The DSS argued that the life sentences handed down to the three convicts were not commensurate with the gravity of the crimes associated with the case.
The prosecution alleged that the defendants, who are all from Niger State, knowingly withheld information about people connected to terrorist activities.
They were also accused of participating in kidnapping operations and using a messaging platform to facilitate the training of members of a terrorist organisation.
Following their guilty pleas, the court sentenced all three men to life imprisonment on count six.
Umar was also handed life sentences on counts seven, nine and 10.
The DSS has now indicated its intention to challenge the judgment, with the agency seeking a review of the punishment imposed on the convicts.
The development came shortly after another Federal High Court in Abuja sentenced two senior commanders of the Ansaru terrorist organisation to life imprisonment.
The two men were identified as Mahmud Muhammad Usman, also known as Abu Bara’a, and his deputy, Mahmud al-Nigeri, also known as Mallam Mamuda.
