DSS secures death sentence for Sokoto kidnapper over three killings - The Guardian Nigeria News

The Department of State Services (DSS) has secured the conviction and death sentence of Ibrahim Usman, also known as Dan Iyali, for his involvement in the kidnapping and killing of three persons in Sokoto State in September 2023.

Usman was tried on a four-count charge before the Sokoto High Court sitting in Sokoto. The charges bordered on criminal conspiracy, kidnapping, culpable homicide punishable by death and voluntarily causing grievous hurt without provocation.

Delivering judgment, Justice Mohammed Mohammed held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.

The court sentenced Usman to life imprisonment for kidnapping and death by hanging for culpable homicide.

The prosecution told the court that Usman and other suspects, who are currently at large, invaded Bare Village in Goronyo Local Government Area of Sokoto State on September 9, 2023, armed with guns.

They allegedly shot sporadically and kidnapped several residents, including Ahmad Alhassan, Umar Usman, Adamu Haliru, also known as Naibi, Alhaji Sule Muhammad and Abdulmalik Muazu.

The prosecution established that the victims were taken to Marmaro Forest in Giayawa District, where Usman shot Alhaji Shuaibu Isah, also known as Sarkin Ruwa, Umar Usman and Adamu Haliru, resulting in their deaths.

The court also heard that Ahmad Alhassan was shot in the neck while Abdulmalik Muazu was shot in the groin before both were abandoned in the forest. They were later rescued by members of a vigilante group.

Security sources said Usman was arrested in Bare Village, Goronyo LGA, in May 2024 and subsequently arraigned under relevant provisions of the Sokoto State Penal Code Law 2019.

A security source said the conviction formed part of the DSS’s ongoing efforts to investigate and prosecute individuals involved in kidnapping, terrorism-related violence and other serious security offences across the country.