A Federal High Court in Abuja has admitted a video showing the beheading of Deacon John Olaleye, an abducted teacher of Community School, Oriire, in Oyo State, as an exhibit in the ongoing trial of five alleged members of the Ansaru terrorist group.
Justice Ibrahim Salim admitted the recording as Exhibit Oyo1 after it was played in open court, showing the killing and a message in which the terrorists allegedly explained why they executed the teacher.
The court also admitted as Exhibit Oyo2 a list of demands allegedly submitted to the Federal Government through the Oyo State Government by the terror group, seeking the release of 30 of its members reportedly held in detention facilities across the country.
During the proceedings, the video showed the terrorists claiming that they killed Olaleye because the Federal Government had allegedly delayed action on their demand for the release of detained members in exchange for the abducted pupils and teachers.
The recording was reportedly circulated while the terrorists were holding their victims in captivity as negotiations for a possible exchange continued.
In a message accompanying the video, the group allegedly threatened to kill the remaining captives, including infants, young schoolchildren and women, if its demands were not met.
The footage was tendered by the Department of State Services (DSS) through its lawyer, Oyedepo Rotimi, SAN, Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, during the trial of five defendants accused of belonging to the terrorist group.
The defendants are Mahmud Muhammad, also known as Abu Bara’a and Abbas Mukhtar; Abubakar Abbas, alias Isah Adam and Mallam Mahmuda Al-Nigeri; Abdulrazak Umar, also known as Abu Khalifa and Abu Khalid; Yunusa Musa, alias Abu Yunusa Bin Musa; and Shamsu Adamu Sani, also known as Abu Itisar.
The name of the second defendant, Abubakar Abbas, featured among those the terrorists allegedly demanded should be released.
A DSS operative, identified by the codename BBB, testified that he was part of the team that investigated the abduction at Oriire.
Led in evidence by Rotimi, the witness alleged that the terrorists cut the teacher’s body into pieces after killing him in an attempt to prevent advancing security operatives from reaching their hideout.
He further claimed that the first and second defendants were notorious terrorists wanted by the United States and the United Kingdom over alleged involvement in deadly attacks.
The witness said the demand for Abbas’s release was particularly pursued because he was allegedly a commander in Ansaru, which he linked to attacks that resulted in the deaths of military officers in Nigeria.
During cross-examination by defence counsel Bala Dakum, the DSS operative said the captives’ phones were used to communicate with government officials during negotiations.
He also told the court that Abbas was allegedly used as a bargaining chip by the terrorist group during negotiations for the release of a woman and her infant who were being held captive.
According to the witness, the group threatened to kill all the captives if its demands were not met.
He maintained that Olaleye was killed and beheaded after the terrorists accused government negotiators of failing to secure the release of Abbas, who is the second defendant in the ongoing trial.
Justice Salim adjourned the case until November 19 and 20, 2026, for continuation of the trial.
