A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced a notorious commander of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), Hussaini Ismaila, to 20 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to multiple terrorism charges linked to coordinated attacks on police formations in Kano State.
Justice Emeka Nwite delivered the judgment on Tuesday, convicting Ismaila — popularly known as Mai Tangaran — on a four-count charge filed by the Department of State Services (DSS).
Ismaila masterminded the 2012 bomb and gun attacks on the Police Headquarters in Bompai, the Mobile Police Base on Kabuga Road, the Pharm Centre Police Station, the Angwa Uku Police Station, and other locations in Kano, leaving scores injured. He was arrested on August 31, 2017 in Tsamiyya Babba Village, Gezewa LGA.
The case dragged for years due to interlocutory appeals and a trial-within-trial to determine whether his confessional statements were voluntarily given. The prosecution eventually called five witnesses, including two DSS operatives and two eyewitnesses.
Initially pleading not guilty, the ISWAP leader changed his plea after the fifth prosecution witness testified. His lawyer, P. B. Onijah, asked the court for leniency, saying the defendant was remorseful.
Justice Nwite ruled that Ismaila was guilty on all charges, sentencing him to 15 years on count one and 20 years each on counts two, three, and four, to run concurrently. The sentence will be counted from the date of his arrest in 2017.
In a significant directive, the judge ordered that after serving his term, Ismaila must undergo rehabilitation and deradicalisation before any reintegration into society.
The Controller-General of the Nigerian Correctional Service was also authorised to designate any suitable facility for the convict’s imprisonment.
