The prosecution on Thursday opened its case against five men accused of complicity in the May 15, 2026, kidnapping of pupils and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State, during which two victims were killed.
A protected female witness, identified only as “AAA,” gave harrowing testimony before Justice Salim Ibrahim of the Federal High Court in Abuja. She described the ordeal she and other captives endured during 56 days in the hands of the terrorists.
The Department of State Services (DSS), working with the Federal Ministry of Justice, is prosecuting the five defendants, alleged members of the proscribed group Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina fi-Biladis Sudan (ANSARU). They are Mahmud Muhammad (aka Abu Bara’a, Abbas Mukhtar); Abubakar Abbas (aka Isah Adam, Mallam Mahmuda Al-Nigeri); Abdulrazak Umar (aka Abu Khalifa/Abu Khalid); Yunusa Musa (aka Abu Yunusa Bin Musa); and Shamsu Adamu Sani (aka Abu Itisar). The men are said to hail from Okene in Kogi State, Daura in Katsina State, and Suleja in Niger State.
Led in evidence by Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), the witness told the court that the group of heavily armed terrorists invaded their schools on 12 motorcycles on May 15. They shot sporadically, preventing escape, then forced the victims into the forest—some on motorcycles carrying about four people each, others in a teacher’s Toyota car.
At the first forest location, a leader informed the captives they were being held not for ransom but to pressure the government into releasing arrested ANSARU members. The witness said the terrorists later beheaded Deacon John Olaleye and Michael Oyedokun in front of the group as a tactic to force compliance with their demands.
She recounted that the captives were moved barefoot between six forest locations. They slept on grass under heavy rain and intense sun. Food was scarce—initially rice with salt and palm oil, later just white rice served from a dirty rubber bucket. Water was severely limited; at times four people shared a single cup of dirty water. Young children, some as young as one and a half years old from pre-nursery classes, were among those held and sometimes flogged to stop them competing for food. The victims had no chance to wash or bathe throughout their captivity. Their phones were seized and used by the captors to contact relatives and government officials with demands.
The group was eventually rescued by security agents at the sixth location, which the witness called “Camp Six.”
After the examination-in-chief, Justice Ibrahim adjourned the matter to Friday for cross-examination by defence counsel Bala Dakum. The judge ordered that the defendants remain in DSS custody for the duration of the trial.
Earlier, the five men were re-arraigned on an amended seven-count charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/438/2026. The charges include conspiracy, aiding terrorist acts, kidnapping, killings, and concealing information about planned terrorist activities. They pleaded not guilty.
Oyedepo successfully applied for the trial to proceed under the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, and for witnesses to wear masks to protect their identities. The defence raised no objection.