Ansaru Commanders Get Life Sentence After Guilty Plea In Terrorism Case

Two men identified by security officials as senior Ansaru commanders have been sentenced to life imprisonment after pleading guilty to terrorism and kidnapping charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja.

The case centres on Mahmud Usman, also known as Abu Baraa, and Abubakar Abba, also known as Mahmud al-Nigeri or Malam Mamuda. They changed their pleas before Justice Emeka Nwite on Monday after months of contesting a 32-count charge filed by the Department of State Services on behalf of the Federal Government.

Daily Post reported that the court handed them life imprisonment on counts 30 and 31, with 20-year terms on the remaining counts. The other terms are to run from the date of their arrest.

The charges covered terrorism, terrorism financing, kidnapping for ransom, illegal mining, funding terrorism and the fabrication of improvised explosive devices. Channels TV reported that the men were arraigned in September 2025 after their arrest by the DSS.

Security officials linked the defendants to attacks including the 2022 Kuje prison break, the attack on the Nigerian Army’s Wawa Cantonment in Kainji, and kidnappings. The earlier allegations also included training in weapons handling and IED fabrication in foreign terrorist camps.

Premium Times reported that prosecutors described the defendants as senior figures in Ansaru, with one identified as the group’s self-styled emir and the other as a deputy leader and chief of staff. Their guilty plea moved the case from a contested trial to sentencing.

Sources: Channels TV, Daily Post, Premium Times