Nigeria News
Mass Trial: Court Convicts 125 Boko Haram Members, Financial Backers
The Federal Ministry of Justice has announced the conviction of 125 Boko Haram members and their financial supporters following a mass trial over two days in Kainji, Niger State.
The announcement was made by Kamardeen Ogundele, the spokesperson for the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF), Lateef Fagbemi, in a statement released on Friday, July 26.
Ogundele detailed that the convictions were for charges related to terrorism, financing terrorism, providing material support, and crimes associated with the International Criminal Court (ICC).
“The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), is overseeing the trials in collaboration with the Office of the National Security Adviser,” Ogundele stated.
The trials, conducted under the Giwa Project Kanji Phase Five, took place on Tuesday and Wednesday before a panel of five Federal High Court judges led by Justice Binta Nyako.
The other judges included Justices Joyce Abdulmalik, Emeka Nwite, Obiora Egwuatu, and Mobolaji Olajuwon.
The prosecution was headed by the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation, Mohammed Babadoko Abubakar, while the defense was led by Mr. Abdulfatai Bakre from the Legal Aids Council.
The proceedings were observed by international bodies such as the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crimes (UNODC), among others.
The courts sentenced 85 individuals for financing terrorism, 22 for crimes related to the ICC, and others for terrorism, imposing various prison terms.
Additionally, it was noted that 400 individuals who have completed their sentences have been transferred to Operation Safe Corridor in Gombe State for rehabilitation, deradicalization, and eventual reintegration into society.