Relatives of slain terrorist Battujo het 20 years jail term each for aiding banditry

Safiya Salihu and Halima Abdullahi, the mother and sister of slain terrorist kingpin Kachallah Ibrahim Battujo, have each been sentenced to 20 years imprisonment by the Federal High Court in Abuja after pleading guilty to terrorism-related offences linked to the activities of the notorious bandit leader.

Justice Hauwa Joseph Yilwa delivered the judgment on Friday after the two women admitted to charges of aiding and abetting terrorism and concealing information capable of assisting security agencies in apprehending the wanted criminal.

The court convicted the defendants on three counts contained in a five-count charge filed by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation after the prosecution withdrew two of the charges.

During the proceedings, Oyedepo Rotimi, Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation, urged the court to strike out the two counts and enter convictions on the remaining charges to which the defendants had pleaded guilty.

The court subsequently discharged the women on allegations relating to the receipt of N490,300 said to be proceeds of terrorism and sponsorship of a Hajj pilgrimage allegedly financed with funds linked to terrorist activities.

However, the court found both women guilty of providing information to Battujo through telephone communications, an act deemed to have aided and abetted his terrorist operations.
Safiya Salihu was further convicted for concealing intelligence regarding her son’s activities despite possessing information that could have assisted security agencies in tracking and arresting him.

Halima Abdullahi also admitted withholding information about her brother’s operations, including his possession of firearms at a forest hideout she had visited.

Justice Yilwa sentenced both convicts to 20 years imprisonment on each count but ordered the sentences to run concurrently, meaning each will serve 20 years in prison.

The judge also directed that both women undergo rehabilitation programmes after completing their prison terms.
Court documents indicated that the offences contravened provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, particularly sections dealing with aiding terrorist activities and concealing information that could assist law enforcement agencies in preventing or prosecuting terrorism-related crimes.

Battujo, a notorious terrorist commander operating across parts of the North-Central and North-West, was killed by Nigerian security forces on June 10, 2026, during a military operation in a forest near Iluke in Kabba/Bunu Local Government Area of Kogi State.

The convictions are expected to strengthen ongoing efforts by the Federal Government and security agencies to dismantle support networks sustaining terrorist and bandit groups across the country.