Reported by: Ijeoma G | Edited by: Oravbiere Osayomore Promise.
The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Thursday, June 11, 2026, sentenced five men to 25 years imprisonment each for their roles in the November 21, 2025, attack on St. Joseph’s Catholic Primary and Secondary School in Papiri, Agwara Local Government Area of Niger State. Justice Binta Nyako handed down the sentence shortly after the five defendants pleaded guilty to four terrorism‑related charges filed against them by the Federal Government.
The convicts are Yusuf Mohammed (also known as Bature), Goni Ibrahim Bindi (also known as Goni Mutuwa), Sani Tukur (also known as Danladi), Mubarak Ibrahim, and Musa Alhaji Adamu (also known as Gado Banufe). Two of the men are Nigerien nationals. They were arrested by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) at different locations on May 31, 2026, less than two weeks before their conviction and sentencing. Justice Nyako described the trial as one of the fastest terrorism prosecutions in the country’s history.
The attack for which the convicts were prosecuted occurred in the early hours of November 21, 2025, when dozens of armed men on motorcycles invaded the Catholic boarding school. The gunmen rounded up students and teachers at gunpoint before marching more than 250 students for days into the Kainji Lake Reserve Forest. About 50 children managed to escape in the chaos that followed the attack. All the abducted persons were eventually rescued and reunited with their families on December 24, 2025.
The prosecution told the court that the five men acted as arms couriers for the gunmen. Between April 23 and 24, 2026, they conspired to convey 15 AK‑103 rifles and approximately 1,434 rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition from the Diffa region of the Republic of Niger to a member of the Boko Haram terrorist group identified as Malam Ahmad, who was based in Borgu Local Government Area of Niger State. During one of the arrests, DSS operatives recovered the rifles and ammunition concealed in sacks loaded inside a Volkswagen Golf car. The vehicle and the recovered weapons were tendered in court as exhibits. Justice Nyako ordered the forfeiture of the Volkswagen Golf car to the Federal Government.
The charges against the defendants included conspiracy to render assistance to a terrorist, rendering support for the commission of an act of terrorism, unlawful possession of firearms, and failure to disclose information useful to security agencies. By their actions, the court found that the men had violated Section 16 and Section 26(1) of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, as well as the Firearms Act.
After the five men pleaded guilty to all four counts, Justice Nyako convicted each of them and sentenced them to 25 years in prison. The court further held that the sentence would run from the date of their arrest, May 31, 2026.
The swift prosecution and sentencing of the five men have drawn praise from security analysts and civil society groups, who described the outcome as a strong signal that the government is willing to pursue terrorism cases with urgency and finality. The case is regarded as a landmark terrorism prosecution, given the speed with which it moved from arrest to final judgment.
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