Terrorism Crackdown: Sokoto Court Sentences Three, Including Nigerien National, to Death by Hanging

A High Court in Sokoto State has sentenced three men, including a Nigerien national, to death by hanging after finding them guilty of terrorism-related offences, arms proliferation and other cross-border criminal activities.

Yusuf Muhammad aka SALLAU

The convicts, Yusuf Muhammad, popularly known as Sallau, a citizen of Niger Republic, alongside Jabbi Alhaji Yalle and Kabiru Muhammad were prosecuted following their arrest by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) Counter-Terrorism Unit on June 13, 2025.

Justice Bello, who delivered the judgment, held that the prosecution had successfully established the charges against the defendants beyond reasonable doubt and consequently convicted them on all counts.

Jabbi Alhaji YALLE aka DanGoronyo

The court subsequently sentenced the three men to death by hanging and ordered the forfeiture of all monies and assets linked to their criminal activities to the Federal Government.

The judgment marks another major success in Nigeria’s ongoing efforts to dismantle terrorist networks, illegal arms trafficking rings and cross-border criminal syndicates operating within and around the country’s borders.

Kabiru Abubakar MARADUN

Security sources said the convicts were implicated in activities connected to terrorism financing, illicit arms movements and other crimes considered threats to national security.

The Sokoto verdict comes amid a series of recent convictions secured through investigations conducted by the DSS and other security agencies.

Only last week, a Federal High Court in Katsina sentenced Hauwa’u Mukhtar to death after convicting her on charges related to arms trafficking. Mukhtar was arrested by DSS operatives while allegedly transporting 438 rounds of ammunition intended for a suspected bandit kingpin.

Similarly, a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja recently handed death sentences to Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik and Abdulhaleem Idris for their roles in the deadly attack on worshippers at a church in Owo, Ondo State, which left more than 40 people dead.

In another major prosecution, a Kogi State High Court in Lokoja sentenced Jibrin Halilu to death by hanging after convicting him for the kidnapping and murder of a prominent hotelier in Obajana. Halilu was arrested following a DSS investigation and charged with conspiracy, kidnapping and murder.

The latest conviction in Sokoto is expected to reinforce ongoing efforts by security agencies and the judiciary to combat terrorism, banditry, kidnapping and arms proliferation, particularly in Nigeria’s northern region where cross-border criminal activities have remained a major security concern.