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DSS vows to appeal the life sentences imposed on two convicted Ansaru commanders, insisting only the death penalty reflects the gravity of their crimes.
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Security agency links the convicts to the Oriire school abduction, alleging terrorists demanded their release and beheaded two teachers to pressure the Federal Government.
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The pair pleaded guilty to 32 terrorism-related charges, including terrorism financing, kidnapping for ransom, illegal mining, IED fabrication, and coordinating sleeper cells.
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Prosecutors accuse the convicted terrorists of involvement in several high-profile attacks, including the Kuje prison break, the Wawa Cantonment assault, and multiple kidnappings.
July 21, (THEWILL) — The Department of State Services (DSS) has rejected the life imprisonment imposed on two senior commanders of the Ansaru terrorist group by the Federal High Court in Abuja.
It declared that the punishment is grossly inadequate for crimes that claimed numerous lives, fuelled terrorism across Nigeria and allegedly led to the execution of two abducted teachers in Oyo State.
In a move that signals what could become one of the country’s most closely watched terrorism appeals, the Service disclosed that it would challenge Monday’s judgment before the Court of Appeal, insisting that the convicted terrorists deserve the death penalty rather than life imprisonment.
The agency’s position came hours after Justice Emeka Nwite convicted Mahmud Usman, also known as Abu Bara’a, Abbas, and Mukhtar, described as the self-proclaimed Emir of Ansaru, and Abubakar Abba, also known as Mahmud al-Nigeri or Malam Mamuda, following their dramatic decision to abandon earlier not-guilty pleas and admit guilt to all 32 terrorism-related counts filed against them by the Federal Government.
Justice Nwite sentenced both men to life imprisonment on counts 30 and 31, which bordered on terrorism financing.
He also imposed 20-year prison terms on counts one to nine, 11 to 29, and 32, while each defendant received an additional 15-year sentence on count 10.
The court ordered that all the prison terms should run concurrently from the date of their arrest.
Although the judgment effectively guarantees that the convicts will spend the remainder of their lives behind bars unless overturned, the DSS insists the sentence does not reflect either the magnitude of the offences or the human cost of the terrorist campaign allegedly coordinated by the two Ansaru leaders.
A senior official of the Service, who spoke shortly after the judgment, said investigators considered it particularly significant that the defendants altered their legal strategy while pupils and teachers abducted from Oriire in Oyo State remained in captivity.
According to the official, intelligence gathered during the hostage crisis showed that one of the key demands made by the kidnappers was the unconditional release of the two Ansaru commanders standing trial in Abuja.
“For nearly 60 days that the pupils and teachers remained in captivity, the two Ansaru commanders changed their position before the court.
“They moved from maintaining their innocence to telling the court they were undecided about the plea they intended to enter. Justice Nwite eventually gave them an ultimatum to make up their minds before Monday’s proceedings.
“It was only after security forces successfully rescued the Oriire victims that they returned to court and pleaded guilty to all the charges,” the official said.
He alleged that two teachers were beheaded by the abductors after the government refused to exchange the hostages for the two Ansaru commanders.
“The terrorists killed those teachers in an attempt to pressure the government into releasing these men.
“Their families deserve justice, and we do not believe life imprisonment adequately reflects the enormity of what happened,” the official added.
The DSS source stressed that the appeal would seek a stiffer punishment consistent with the seriousness of the offences established before the court.
A Trial That Took a Dramatic Turn
The convictions marked the culmination of a terrorism trial that began in September 2025 after the DSS arraigned the defendants on a sweeping 32-count charge covering terrorism, terrorism financing, kidnapping for ransom, illegal mining, financing terrorist operations, fabrication of improvised explosive devices (IEDs), conspiracy, and other offences.
The prosecution also accused the defendants of coordinating terrorist sleeper cells, supervising attacks, recruiting fighters, and maintaining operational links with Al-Qaeda-affiliated extremist organisations operating across the Sahel and Maghreb.
When first arraigned on September 11, 2025, Mahmud Usman admitted only one count relating to illegal mining allegedly used to generate funds for terrorism and was immediately convicted and sentenced to 15 years’ imprisonment on that count.
He denied the remaining 31 counts, while Abubakar Abba pleaded not guilty to every charge.
Proceedings later stalled after defence counsel Bala Dakum informed the court that DSS officials had prevented him from meeting his clients to adequately prepare their defence.
When the trial resumed in March, the prosecution opened its case with testimony from a DSS operative identified only by the codename “Triple A.”
The witness testified that both defendants confessed during the investigation to receiving weapons training in Libya, admitted belonging to Ansaru, and acknowledged maintaining operational relationships with Al-Qaeda-linked terrorist organisations across West and North Africa.
The witness further alleged that both men coordinated terrorist cells operating in different parts of Nigeria and participated in planning attacks against both civilian and military targets.
The proceedings took an unexpected turn on July 9 when Abubakar Abba informed the court that he wished to reconsider his not-guilty plea. Justice Nwite adjourned the matter to enable him to take a final decision.
When proceedings resumed on Monday, both defendants requested that the entire 32-count charge be read afresh.
One after another, they admitted every allegation.
Lead prosecuting counsel subsequently urged the court to convict them under Section 274 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), 2015, arguing that the guilty pleas were voluntary, unequivocal, and left no issue for trial.
Mercy Plea Rejected
Before sentencing, defence lawyer Bala Dakum urged the court to temper justice with mercy. He argued that both defendants had accepted responsibility for their actions and had expressed genuine remorse.
According to him, Usman, aged 50, has 19 children, suffers from arthritis, and hopes to return to school if given another opportunity.
He also said Abba, 34, has a wife and three children, suffers from the same medical condition, and remains the family’s breadwinner.
Dakum further submitted that both men claimed they were forced into joining the terrorist organisation and had volunteered to assist Nigerian security agencies with intelligence on terrorist financing, recruitment networks, and operational structures.
Addressing the court personally, Usman apologised on behalf of himself and his co-defendant, saying they pleaded guilty because they regretted their actions and did not wish to waste the court’s time.
Justice Nwite said he had carefully considered the allocutus presented by the defence, together with the plea for mercy, before imposing sentence.
Arrest and Terror Allegations
The two convicted terrorists were arrested during a coordinated intelligence-led operation conducted between May and July 2025 by Nigerian security agencies.
Announcing the breakthrough in August 2025, National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu described the arrests as a major victory in Nigeria’s counter-terrorism campaign, noting that both suspects had remained on national and international watchlists for years.
Investigators identified them as two of the most senior operational commanders of Ansaru, the Al-Qaeda-affiliated extremist group responsible for numerous kidnappings, attacks on security formations, and terrorist operations across northern Nigeria.
Court documents alleged that the pair financed terrorism through proceeds from illegal mining and ransom payments collected from kidnap victims between 2015 and 2025, using the funds to procure weapons, explosives, and logistics for terrorist operations.
The prosecution further accused them of manufacturing improvised explosive devices, coordinating sleeper cells, and maintaining communication with terrorist organisations operating throughout the Sahel and Maghreb.
The charges also linked the defendants to several notorious terrorist incidents, including the 2013 abduction of French engineer Francis Collomp, the kidnapping of the Magajin Garin Daura, Musa Uba, the abduction of the Emir of Wawa, the 2022 attack on the Nigerian Army’s Wawa Cantonment in Kainji, Niger State, and the July 2022 assault on the Kuje Correctional Centre in Abuja that resulted in the escape of more than 600 inmates.
The prosecution maintained that the two men played strategic roles in planning, financing, and coordinating several of the attacks attributed to Ansaru.
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