By Desire Emmanuel
A member of the Boko Haram insurgents, Auwalu Samaila, is to die by hanging as the Federal High Court in Abuja on Thursday, April 9, sentenced him.
Justice James Omotosho, in a judgment, convicted and sentenced Samaila to death after he pleaded guilty to the six counts preferred against him by the Federal Government.
“It is when somebody is remorseful and seeks forgiveness with God that he can have mercy from him.
“The convict before me is not remorseful despite a lot of atrocities and lives that had gone from his hand. May God have mercy on his soul,” the judge said.
The Federal Government, in the charge, sued Samaila for terrorism-related offences as sole defendant.
In count one, Samaila, who hails from Gulak Village, Madagali Local Government Area of Adamawa State, was alleged to have, between 2012 and 2017 in Sabongari Kyambula Village, confessed to being a member of Boko Haram, a proscribed terrorist organisation.
In counts two and three, he was alleged to have agreed to receive training on terrorist activities from one Sadiqu Adamu (Kare-kare), a Boko Haram member, and a training in weapon handling with AK-47 in preparation to commit an act of terrorism under the leadership of Yabana in Izza Boko Haram Camp.
Samaila, in count four, was accused of participating in an attack at Damboa, Borno State, between 2012 and 2017, where military personnel and civilians were killed.
He was also alleged to have participated in the attack at Gombi in Adamawa State where scores of civilians were killed.
The convict was equally accused of taking part in the terror attack at Hong in Adamawa State where civilians were also killed.
The offence, the prosecution said, was contrary to Section 1(2) of the Terrorism (Prevention Amendment) Act, 2013 and punishable under the same section of the Act.
The prosecution, led by Jemila Ade, Deputy Director, Public Prosecutions in the Ministry of Justice, tendered Samaila’s confessional statement which was admitted in evidence and marked as exhibit.
In his confessional statement, Samaila stated that he was used to conveyed female suicide bombers to target locations.
He also stated that he participated in attacks in Mubi, Chibok, Damaturu, Michika, Gulak, among others.
Samaila said it was the Konduga operation where the group fought with the military that led to the amputation of his left leg.
Delivering the judgment, the judge sentenced Samaila to death by hanging on counts four, five and six.
The judge also sentenced him to 25 years jail term in each of counts one and two while in count three, he bagged 30 years imprisonment.
Justice Omotosho, in separate judgments on Thursday, also convicted and sentenced two Boko Haram terrorists to life imprisonment after they pleaded guilty to the terrorsim offences.
The two convicts are Shura Abdullahi and Abdulrahman Ari.
The judge equally committed Aisami Kadi, Umaru Usman and Abdulrahman Hassan, who pleaded guilty to the charges, to different jail terms, ranging between 20 and 21 years in the counts preferred against them by the prosecution.
