Court Jails Ansaru Commander Mahmud Usman 15 Years For Terrorism

A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced Mahmud Usman, a commander of the proscribed Ansaru sect, to 15 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to terrorism-related charges.

Usman, also known as Abu Bara’a, Abbas, or Mukhtar, admitted to engaging in illegal mining and channeling the proceeds into arms procurement for terrorist and kidnapping operations.

Delivering judgment on Thursday, Justice Emeka Nwite ordered that Usman remain in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) while he faces trial on 31 additional counts.

The self-styled “Emir of Ansaru” was arraigned alongside his deputy, Mahmud al-Nigeri, popularly known as Malam Mamuda, who served as his chief of staff. Both men are facing a 32-count indictment that includes charges of financing terrorism, recruiting fighters, and coordinating violent attacks across the country.

Security authorities have linked the sect to several deadly operations, including the July 2022 raid on Kuje Prison in Abuja, which freed over 600 inmates, among them 64 Boko Haram suspects. They were also implicated in the 2022 assault on the Nigerian Army’s Wawa Cantonment in Niger State, where many soldiers were killed.

National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu described Usman as the “coordinator of terrorist sleeper cells across Nigeria” and the mastermind of several high-profile kidnappings used to fund insurgency.

His deputy, Mamuda, was reported to have received training in Libya between 2013 and 2015 under jihadist instructors, specialising in weapons handling and bomb-making.

The duo have also been linked to past kidnappings, including the 2013 abduction of French engineer Francis Collomp, the 2019 kidnapping of Musa Uba, Magajin Garin Daura, and the abduction of the Emir of Wawa.

The case against Mamuda and other associates is still ongoing.