A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced Hussaini Ismaila, alias Mai Tangaran, a senior leader of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), to 20 years imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to multiple terrorism charges filed by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Justice Emeka Nwite delivered the judgment on Tuesday, convicting Ismaila on four counts brought under the Terrorism (Prevention) Amendment Act, 2013.
The court heard that Ismaila coordinated a series of deadly attacks in 2012 across Kano State, including:
Police Headquarters, Bompai
Mobile Police Base, Kabuga Road
Pharm Centre Police Station
Angwa Uku Police Station
Several other locations were also targeted in the coordinated assaults, which left many injured.Ismaila was arrested on August 31, 2017, in Tsamiyya Babba Village, Gezawa Local Government Area of Kano State.
The trial faced significant delays due to appeals and a trial-within-a-trial to determine the voluntariness of his confessional statements.During the substantive trial, the prosecution presented five witnesses, including two DSS officers and two eyewitnesses to the attacks.
Initially pleading not guilty, Ismaila changed his plea to guilty following the testimony of the fifth prosecution witness.
His defence counsel, P.B. Onijah of the Legal Aid Council, urged the court to show leniency, stating that the convict was deeply remorseful, regretted his involvement in terrorism, and changed his plea to save the court’s time.In his ruling, Justice Nwite sentenced Ismaila to:
15 years on Count One
20 years each on Counts Two, Three, and Four
The sentences are to run concurrently, with time served starting from the date of his arrest — August 31, 2017.
The judge further directed the Controller-General of the Nigerian Correctional Service to detain Ismaila in any facility of his choice and mandated that the convict undergo rehabilitation and deradicalization programs upon completion of his sentence before any possible reintegration into society.
The conviction marks another significant victory for Nigerian authorities in the fight against ISWAP and homegrown terrorism.
