A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has sentenced the mother and sister of notorious terrorist commander Kachallah Ibrahim Battujo to 40 years imprisonment each after they admitted to supporting his terrorist operations.
Justice Hauwa Yilwa delivered the judgment on Friday following the guilty pleas entered by Safiya Salihu and Halima Abdullahi to terrorism-related offences brought against them by the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation.
Battujo, a feared bandit and terrorist leader, was killed by security operatives on June 10, 2026, after an unsuccessful attempt to abduct large numbers of students who were sitting for the West African Senior School Certificate Examination in a forest area near Iluke in Kabba/Bunu Local Government Area of Kogi State.
The court found both women guilty on three of the five charges filed against them. Among the offences was their role in facilitating Battujo’s activities by supplying information through telephone communications, an act that contravenes provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
Safiya, who is Battujo’s mother, was also convicted for withholding information from authorities despite visiting her son’s camp in the forest and observing that he possessed firearms. Her daughter, Halima, was separately found guilty of concealing information that could have assisted security agencies in tracking down and arresting the terrorist leader.
During proceedings, prosecutors presented portions of the charges against the defendants, which stated:
“That you HALIMA ABDULLAHI and SAFIYA SALIHU, Female, adult, of Dungun Muaza Sabuwa LGA, Katsina State sometime in 2026 at Katsina State within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, did commit an offence, when you received the sum of four hundred and ninety thousand, three hundred Naira only (N490,300) from Battujo a known terrorist, which sum you reasonably ought to know formed part of the proceeds of Terrorism, and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under the section 21 of the Terrorism (Prevention Prohibition) Act, 2022.
“That you HALIMA ABDULLAHI and SAFIYA SALIHU, Female, adult, of Dungun Muaza Sabuwa LGA, Katsina State sometime in 2026 at Katsina State within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, did commit an offence, when you aided and abetted the activities of Battujo a known bandit Kingpin and passed information through telephone conversations to the said Battujo, and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under section 26 of the Terrorism (Prevention Prohibition) Act, 2022.”
The defendants admitted guilt on counts two, four and five, leading to their conviction on those charges.
However, the court struck out counts one and three, which accused the pair of knowingly receiving ₦490,300 derived from terrorist activities. Their discharge on those counts followed an application made by the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Oyedepo Rotimi (SAN).
Although each of the offences for which they were convicted carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years, Justice Yilwa ordered that the sentences run concurrently, resulting in an effective jail term of 40 years each.
In addition to the custodial sentences, the court directed that both women undergo rehabilitation programmes after serving their prison terms.
(Ripples)
