Court sentences Ansaru Commander Mahmud Usman to 15 Years in prison

A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced Mahmud Usman, a commander of the proscribed terrorist group Ansaru, to 15 years imprisonment after he pleaded guilty to charges of illegal mining used to fund terrorism and kidnappings.

Usman, who was arraigned by the Department of State Services (DSS), was ordered by Justice Emeka Nwite to remain in DSS custody pending trial on 31 additional charges. The case is set to continue on October 21.

In a 32-count charge, Usman and his associate Abubakar Abba were accused of carrying out acts of terrorism in 2022, including an attack on Wawa Cantonment in Kainji, Niger State, that resulted in multiple casualties.

They allegedly received weapons training, bomb-making skills, and war tactics from various terrorist camps, including one in Mali.

The DSS linked the group to the July 2022 Kuje prison attack, which freed over 600 inmates, as well as plans to strike a Niger uranium facility and several high-profile kidnappings, including that of French engineer Francis Collomp in 2013.

They were also implicated in the 2019 abduction of Alhaji Musa Umar Uba, Magajin Garin Daura, and other armed robberies.

National Security Adviser (NSA) Nuhu Ribadu confirmed their arrest, describing Usman as the “self-styled Emir of Ansaru” and mastermind of multiple sleeper cells across Nigeria. He added that Mamuda, identified as Usman’s “chief of staff,” led the Mahmudawa cell around Kainji National Park.

Ansaru, a Boko Haram splinter group, emerged in 2012 and has been linked to several terror attacks across the country.