Court remands suspected Boko Haram member

  A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the remand of one Hussaini Isma’il (aka Maitangaran) who was charged with terrorism acts allegedly committed in Kano. Isma’il, of Brithi village, Biu LGA of Borno State, was arraigned yesterday on a four-count charge bordering on “professing to be a member of Boko Haram, a terrorist […]

 

A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the remand of one Hussaini Isma’il (aka Maitangaran) who was charged with terrorism acts allegedly committed in Kano.

Isma’il, of Brithi village, Biu LGA of Borno State, was arraigned yesterday on a four-count charge bordering on “professing to be a member of Boko Haram, a terrorist group in Nigeria” and “thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 16(1) of the Terrorism Prevention (Amendment) Act, 2013.

The federal government further alleged that the 34-year-old Isma’il sometime in 2014 “directly participated in act of terrorism to wit: carry out an attack on the police headquarters in Bompai, Kano State, which led to the death of some personnel of the police station.”

He was also alleged to have directly participated in the attack on Mobile Police Base, Kabuga Road, Kano State, also in 2014 which led to the death of some personnel of the station. The charge also alleged that Isma’il participated in another attack in 2014 on a police station in Ungwa Uku area of Kano State.

Upon his plea of not guilty to the charge, the prosecution counsel, Barr Adewumi Aluko, urged the court to remand the defendant in a custodial centre and give a date for hearing, while the defence counsel, Barr Aliyu asked the court for an accelerated hearing of the case.

Consequently, Justice Anwuli Chikere, adjourned the matter to February 10, 2020 and ordered that the defendant be remanded in the correctional centre in Kuje.

The judge, however, observed that the defendant appeared sick and consequently ordered that he should be attended to medically by the correctional centre before the next adjourned date.