A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced Paul Okechukwu to twenty years in prison after he pleaded guilty to belonging to the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB.
A separate count alleging his involvement in an attack that killed two security operatives was withdrawn by the prosecution and struck out by the court.
Paul Okechukwu faced a two-count charge brought by the Federal Government.
The first count accused him of belonging to IPOB in Imo State in 2021, an offence under Section 16 of the Terrorism (Prevention) (Amendment) Act, 2013.
He pleaded guilty to that count but denied the second, which alleged his participation in an attack in which two security operatives were killed.
The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, who led the prosecution, withdrew the second count. The court subsequently struck it out.
The prosecution then called a Department of State Services witness, identified in court as “ABC,” to present the facts of the case.
The witness said he was part of the team that investigated Okechukwu and identified him as an IPOB member.
He tendered an investigation report, which the court admitted as Exhibit A.
Seeking a conviction, Fagbemi argued that the offence attracted a minimum sentence of twenty years.
Okechukwu broke down in tears and pleaded for mercy.
Delivering judgment, Justice Hawa Yilwa convicted him on the membership count and sentenced him to twenty years in prison.
The judge ordered that the sentence run from the date of his arrest and be served at a correctional facility designated by the Comptroller-General of the Nigerian Correctional Service.
The court also ordered his rehabilitation and deradicalisation upon completion of the sentence.
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Editor: Ada Ononye
