Agency says punishment does not reflect gravity of terrorism offences linked to Oriire school abduction.
The Department of State Services (DSS) has announced plans to appeal the life imprisonment handed to three men convicted over the abduction of pupils and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The agency said it was dissatisfied with the judgment, arguing that the sentences were not commensurate with the gravity of the offences committed during the attack, which included the killing of two teachers by members of the terrorist group involved.
Justice Salim Ibrahim of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Thursday sentenced Abdulrazak Umar, also known as Abu Khalifa or Abu Khalid, Yunusa Musa (alias Yunusa Bin Musa), and Shamsu Adamu Sani (alias Abu Itisar) to life imprisonment after they pleaded guilty to terrorism-related offences.
The convicts admitted belonging to Darul Salam, an affiliate of the Ansaru terrorist organisation, concealing information relating to the kidnapping, and inciting members of the group through religious ideology.
Abdulrazak Umar also pleaded guilty to additional counts involving terrorist training, passing instructions and radicalising members of the group.
The defendants, all from Niger State, were prosecuted by the DSS on a 10-count charge bordering on kidnapping, concealment of information and terrorism offences under the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
According to the charges, they knowingly concealed information about terrorist activities, participated in the kidnapping operation and used a messaging platform to facilitate terrorist training.
The court sentenced the three defendants to life imprisonment on Count Six, while Abdulrazak Umar received additional life sentences on Counts Seven, Nine and Ten.
The DSS said it would challenge the judgment at the Court of Appeal, maintaining that the punishment did not adequately reflect the severity of the crimes.
The agency noted that it had also filed an appeal against the recent life imprisonment of two senior Ansaru commanders, Mahmud Muhammad Usman (Abu Bara’a) and his deputy, Mahmud al-Nigeri (Mallam Mamuda), who were convicted by the Federal High Court in Abuja.