A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced an ISWAP leader, Hussaini Ismaila, to 20 years in prison for carrying out terrorist attacks in Kano State.
The case was handled by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Justice Emeka Nwite gave the judgment on Tuesday.
The court said Ismaila, also known as Mai Tangaran, was guilty after he changed his plea from “not guilty” to “guilty.”
According to the DSS, Ismaila helped plan and coordinate several attacks in 2012.
These attacks targeted the Police Headquarters in Bompai, the Mobile Police Base on Kabuga Road, and police stations at Pharm Centre and Angwa Uku in Kano. Many people were injured during the attacks.
He was arrested on 31 August 2017, at a village called Tsamiyya Babba in Gezewa Local Government Area of Kano. The DSS charged him under Nigeria’s Terrorism Prevention Amendment Act.
The trial took several years because of appeals and a “trial-within-trial,” which the court used to decide whether Ismaila’s statements to investigators were made voluntarily.
During the trial, the prosecution called five witnesses, including two DSS officers and two people who witnessed some of the attacks. After the last witness testified, Ismaila changed his plea and said he was sorry for his actions.
His lawyer from the Legal Aid Council begged the court to show mercy.
In the final judgment, Justice Nwite sentenced him to 15 years for the first count and 20 years each for the other three counts. All sentences will run at the same time, starting from the day he was arrested in 2017.
The judge also ordered that Ismaila must undergo rehabilitation and deradicalisation before rejoining society.
