Court sentences Police officer to death for killing UNIJOS student

A Plateau State High Court sitting in Jos has sentenced a police officer, Ruya Auta, to death by hanging or by lethal injection for the killing of University of Jos student, Rinji Bala, an incident that shook Plateau State and the country in 2020.

The judgment, delivered on December 8 by Hon. Justice David Mann, held the officer responsible for unlawfully taking the life of the 20-year-old student, thereby violating his constitutional right to life.

The ruling followed five years of legal battles, advocacy and persistence from the state government, the family and civil society groups. Reacting to the verdict, the counsel to the Plateau State Government, Garba Pwul (SAN), described the judgment as a long-awaited moment of justice. He noted that the outcome demonstrated the state’s commitment to accountability, stressing that justice had finally been served for the deceased, his family and the wider public.

Pwul expressed hope that the decision would stand as a clear warning to security operatives who misuse their weapons or act with reckless disregard for human life. According to him, the ruling should serve as a deterrent to trigger-happy security personnel whose negligence has continued to fuel public distrust.

Before the sentencing, the court had awarded a substantial nine-figure compensation to the family of the late Bala, declaring that his fundamental right to life had been grossly violated by the officer’s conduct. For many who lived through the tragedy, the court’s final pronouncement revived emotions that had hardly healed. Emmanuel Gyang, a close friend who witnessed the moment Bala was shot, said the judgment brought back painful memories rather than a feeling of victory, noting that the trauma of that night has remained with him since 2020.

Rinji Bala was killed on May 13, 2020, by the officer attached to the Special Task Force on peace-keeping operations in Plateau State—an incident that sparked widespread outrage and renewed calls for police reform across Nigeria.