ISWAP Commander Gets 20-Year Sentence as Ansaru Terrorists’ Trial Set for January

Hussaini Ismaila, a leader of the Islamic State West Africa Province, was given a 20-year prison sentence by the Federal High Court in Abuja for crimes related to terrorism.

Ismaila, also known as Mai Tangaran, altered his plea from not guilty to guilty on four counts brought under the Terrorism Prevention (Amendment) Act, 2013, and Judge Emeka Nwite rendered the verdict on Tuesday.

In 2012, Ismaila was charged with planning coordinated assaults on Kano State police formations.

Several persons were reportedly hurt in his attacks on the Police Headquarters in Bompai, the Mobile Police Base on Kabuga Road, the Pharm Centre Police Station, and the Angwa Uku Police Station.

On August 31, 2017, he was taken into custody at Tsamiyya Babba Village in Kano State’s Gezawa Local Government Area.

Interlocutory appeals and a trial-within-trial to ascertain the voluntariness of his extrajudicial utterances caused delays in the trial.

Five witnesses, including operatives and eyewitnesses, were called by the Department of State Services.

Ismaila modified his plea when the fifth witness testified.

His attorney, P. B. Onijah of the Legal Aid Council, pointing out that Ismaila was repentant and had entered a guilty plea to save more delays, requested the court to balance justice with mercy.

He was found guilty on all four counts by Justice Nwite, who sentenced him to 15 years for count one and 20 years for counts two, three, and four, to be served concurrently.

The punishment goes into effect on August 31, 2017, the day of his arrest.

After serving his sentence, the judge mandated that Ismaila undergo rehabilitation and deradicalization.

The trial of Mahmud Usman and Abubakar Abba, two suspected Ansaru leaders, has been postponed until January 15, 2026.

The DSS has filed a 32-count complaint against the defendants for suspected offenses ranging from kidnapping and terrorism to illegal mining, financing terrorism, and purchasing weapons between 2015 and 2024.

Usman has denied the other counts but entered a guilty plea to Count 10, which relates to an economic offense.

He had already received a 15-year sentence for using illicit mining to finance kidnapping and terrorism. Abba has entered a not guilty plea to every accusation.

According to the charges, the two bombed the Wawa Military Cantonment in Niger State, received training in improvised explosives and weapons handling, abducted security personnel, including an immigration officer and a customs officer who were later killed, and obtained millions of naira in ransom payments to buy weapons and train followers in Sudan and Mali.

In the proceedings on Wednesday, defense attorney B. In order to enable access for the trial, I. Bakum asked that the defendants be moved to a correctional facility; however, DSS counsel David Kaswe objected, citing procedural restrictions.

Justice Nwite ordered the defense to adhere to the correct procedure when obtaining access to their clients and postponed the case to January 15, 2026.