The Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced the mother and sister of slain terrorist kingpin, Kachallah Ibrahim Battujo, to 40 years imprisonment for aiding his criminal operations and concealing information that could have led to his arrest.
The two convicts, Safiya Salihu and Halima Abdullahi, were arrested by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) and prosecuted on terrorism-related charges by the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation.
Justice Hauwa Joseph Yilwa delivered the judgment on Friday after both women pleaded guilty to three counts of terrorism-related offences contained in a five-count charge filed against them.
Battujo, a notorious bandit leader who operated across parts of North-Central and North-West Nigeria, was killed by Nigerian security forces on June 10, 2026, during an operation in a forest near Iluke in Kabba/Bunu Local Government Area of Kogi State.
The court heard that the convicts aided and abetted the activities of the terrorist kingpin by passing information to him through telephone conversations, despite knowing his criminal status.
According to Count of the charge, the women “aided and abetted the activities of Battujo, a known bandit kingpin, and passed information through telephone conversations to the said Battujo.”
In addition to admitting guilt on, Battujo’s mother, Halima Abdullahi, pleaded guilty to concealing information about the terrorist activities of her son, an offence contained in Count 5.
Safiya Salihu, Battujo’s sister, also pleaded guilty to Count 4, which accused her of withholding information from security agencies after she visited her brother’s forest camp and saw him in possession of firearms.
The prosecution, led by the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, Oyedepo Rotimi, SAN, asked the court to strike out Counts 1 and 3, which alleged that the women received N490,300 and Hajj sponsorship from proceeds of terrorism.
Justice Yilwa subsequently struck out the two counts and convicted the defendants on the remaining charges to which they had pleaded guilty.
The judge sentenced each of the women to 20 years imprisonment on each count but ordered that the jail terms run concurrently, effectively leaving them to serve 20 years each.
The court further directed that the convicts undergo rehabilitation after serving their prison terms.
The charges revealed that the women allegedly maintained contact with Battujo while he was actively engaged in banditry and terrorism-related activities and failed to disclose information that could have assisted security agencies in apprehending him.
Prosecutors argued that their actions violated provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, particularly sections dealing with aiding terrorist activities and concealing information useful for the arrest of terrorism suspects.
Count 1 read, “That you, HALIMA ABDULLAHI and SAFIYA SALIHU, female adults of Dungun Mu’aza, Sabuwa LGA, Katsina State, sometime in 2026 at Katsina State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, committed an offence when you received the sum of four hundred and ninety thousand, three hundred naira (N490,300) from Battujo, a known terrorist, which sum you reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of terrorism, thereby committing an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 21 of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
“Count 2: That you, HALIMA ABDULLAHI and SAFIYA SALIHU, female adults of Dungun Mu’aza, Sabuwa LGA, Katsina State, sometime in 2026 at Katsina State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, committed an offence when you aided and abetted the activities of Battujo, a known bandit kingpin, and passed information through telephone conversations to him, thereby committing an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 26 of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
“Count 3:That you, HALIMA ABDULLAHI and SAFIYA SALIHU, female adults of Dungun Mu’aza, Sabuwa LGA, Katsina State, sometime in 2026 at Katsina State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, committed an offence when you received sponsorship to travel for the Hajj pilgrimage from Battujo, a known bandit kingpin, using funds you reasonably ought to have known formed part of the proceeds of terrorism, thereby committing an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 21 of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
“Count 4: That you, SAFIYA SALIHU, a female adult of Dungun Mu’aza, Sabuwa LGA, Katsina State, sometime in 2026 at Katsina State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, committed an offence by concealing information about the activities of Battujo, a known bandit kingpin, when you visited his forest camp and saw him in possession of firearms. This information, which you knew would be of material assistance in securing his apprehension, was not disclosed to any law enforcement or security officer as soon as reasonably practicable, thereby committing an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 16 of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
“Count 5: That you, HALIMA ABDULLAHI, a female adult of Dungun Mu’aza, Sabuwa LGA, Katsina State, sometime in 2026 at Katsina State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, committed an offence when you concealed information about the activities of Battujo, a suspected bandit kingpin. This information, which you knew would be of material assistance in securing his apprehension, was not disclosed to any law enforcement or security officer as soon as reasonably practicable, thereby committing an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 16 of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.”