A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced two senior commanders of the Ansaru terrorist group to life imprisonment after they pleaded guilty to multiple terrorism-related offences.
Justice Emeka Nwite convicted Abubakar Abba, also known as Abu Baraa, and Mahmud Usman, known as Mamuda, on 32 counts including terrorism, terrorism financing, kidnapping for ransom, illegal mining and the manufacture of improvised explosive devices.
The court imposed life sentences on two counts and additional 20-year prison terms on the remaining charges, with those sentences taking effect from the date of their arrest.
According to the prosecution, the two men were among the top leaders of the al-Qaeda-linked Ansaru group and were arrested in separate intelligence operations between May and July 2025 after years on Nigeria’s most-wanted list.
Authorities linked them to several major terrorist attacks and kidnappings, including the 2022 Kuje prison attack and the abduction of French engineer Francis Collomp in 2013.
Nigerian National Security Adviser Nuhu Ribadu described their arrest and conviction as a major breakthrough in the country’s fight against terrorism, saying it significantly weakened Ansaru’s leadership structure.
