A High Court in Sokoto State has sentenced three men, one of them a Nigerien national, to death by hanging after finding them guilty of terrorism-related offences and illegal arms proliferation.
The convicted persons—Yusuf Muhammad, popularly known as Sallau, a citizen of Niger Republic, alongside Jabbi Alhaji Yalle and Kabiru Muhammad—were arrested on June 13, 2025, by the Department of State Services (DSS) Counter-Terrorism Unit for their alleged roles in cross-border criminal activities, arms trafficking and terrorism.
In his ruling, Justice Bello held that the prosecution had proved its case against the defendants and consequently convicted them on all charges before imposing the death sentence.
The court further directed that all funds and assets recovered from the convicts in connection with their criminal activities be forfeited to the Federal Government.
The verdict follows a series of recent terrorism and criminal convictions secured across the country. Last week, a Federal High Court in Katsina sentenced Hauwa’u Mukhtar to death after she was found guilty of arms trafficking. She had been arrested by the DSS while allegedly conveying 438 rounds of ammunition to a suspected bandit leader.
In a separate case, a Federal High Court in Abuja sentenced Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik and Abdulhaleem Idris to death for their roles in the deadly attack on worshippers in Owo, Ondo State, where more than 40 people were killed.
Likewise, a Kogi State High Court in Lokoja recently handed Jibrin Halilu a death sentence after convicting him of kidnapping and murdering a hotelier in Obajana. Halilu was arrested by the DSS and prosecuted for conspiracy, kidnapping and murder.
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