"DSS to Appeal Life Sentences for Ansaru Commanders, seek Maximum Penalty
"DSS to Appeal Life Sentences for Ansaru Commanders, Says Punishment Falls Short for Murdered Oriire Teachers"
By Divine Macaulay ยท
"The teachers were killed to pressure the government into releasing these Ansaru commanders. It would be unfair for their families to bear such irreversible losses without ensuring that those responsible face the full weight of the law."
The Department of State Services (DSS) has said, it will appeal the life sentences imposed on two senior commanders of the Ansaru terrorist group, arguing that the punishment falls short of justice for the two teachers beheaded during the abduction of pupils and staff in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The agency said allowing the convicted terrorists to serve life imprisonment rather than face a stiffer penalty fails to reflect the gravity of their crimes, particularly as the kidnappers had demanded their release in exchange for the abducted victims.
Angle360 News had reported that Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja sentenced the two men to life imprisonment on Monday after they pleaded guilty to a 32-count terrorism charge.
The convicts are Mahmud Usman, also known as Abu Bara'a, Abbas or Mukhtar, described by the prosecution as the self-styled Emir of Ansaru, and Mahmud al-Nigeri, also known as Malam Mamuda, his deputy and chief of staff. They changed their plea from not guilty to guilty and appealed for leniency through their lawyer before sentencing.
Reacting to the judgment, a senior DSS official said the agency considers the sentence inadequate given the scale of the offences and the suffering inflicted on victims.
The official disclosed that the two commanders had initially indicated their intention to plead guilty but later reversed their position around the time pupils and teachers from Oriire were abducted by suspected Ansaru members.
"For the nearly 60 days the kidnappers held the pupils and teachers, the Ansaru commanders in our custody changed their position," the official said.
"One of the kidnappers' major demands was the unconditional release of these same Ansaru commanders in exchange for the Oriire victims.
"The defendants, who had earlier pleaded not guilty, later informed the court that they were undecided on the plea they intended to enter. Justice Nwite eventually gave them an ultimatum to make up their minds before Monday's sitting.
"After the successful rescue of the Oriire victims, they returned to court and pleaded guilty to all the charges.
"Allowing the two terror commanders to walk away with life sentences will not serve the cause of justice for the two Oriire teachers beheaded by their abductors.
"The teachers were killed to pressure the government into releasing these Ansaru commanders. It would be unfair for their families to bear such irreversible losses without ensuring that those responsible face the full weight of the law."