An operative of the Department of State Services, DSS on Monday told the Federal High Court Abuja that two suspected commanders of the extremist group, Ansaru admitted receiving weapons training in Libya.
The officer, who testified before Justice Emeka Nwite, said the defendants allegedly confessed during interrogation that they were trained by foreign instructors on the use of weapons and the production of improvised explosive devices, IEDs.
Led in evidence by prosecution counsel, David Kaswe, the witness said the suspects disclosed that the training took place in camps in Libya, where instructors from Egypt, Tunisia and Algeria taught them how to assemble and deploy explosives.
According to the operative, the first defendant, Mahmoud Usman, was arrested after intelligence reports identified him as a leading figure within the group known as Jama’atu Ansarul Muslimina Fi Biladis Sudan, commonly called Ansaru.
He also told the court that the second defendant, Abubakar Abba, was apprehended by DSS personnel at Ugwan Musa Bypass in Kaduna North Local Government Area of Kaduna State.
The witness stated that during questioning, the suspects admitted being members of Ansaru, which he described as a splinter faction of Boko Haram terrorist group.
He alleged that the group had been involved in several criminal activities, including terrorism, kidnappings, armed robbery, banditry and illegal mining operations across parts of the North-West, North-Central and South-West regions, as well as Edo and Delta states.
The witness further claimed that the defendants told investigators that the group was formally established in Jigawa State in 2012 after a series of meetings.
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In his testimony, the operative also alleged that the second defendant admitted participating in a 2020 attack on a Nigerian Army formation in Wawa, an incident that reportedly led to the death of several soldiers.
He added that the suspects also confessed to the abduction of Musa Umar Uba, an in-law of former President Muhammadu Buhari, along with an immigration officer and a customs official.
The witness further alleged that the second defendant disclosed that he had pledged allegiance to Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, JNIM, which he claimed provided weapons and ammunition to the group.
However, counsel for the defendants, Bala Dakum, challenged the admissibility of the alleged confessional statements, arguing that they should not be accepted as evidence.
The prosecution opposed the objection, maintaining that the statements were obtained voluntarily in the presence of a lawyer from the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria, in accordance with the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.
In a short ruling, Justice Nwite ordered a trial-within-trial to determine whether the statements were made voluntarily and could be admitted as evidence.
The matter was adjourned until 13th April 2026, for the commencement of the trial-within-trial.
(Editor: Terverr Tyav)
