Nigerian Soldier Sentenced to 55-Years in Jail Over Murder, Theft

An Army Lance Corporal, Babangida Ibrahim has been sentenced to 55 years imprisonment by a General Court Martial presided over by Maj. Gen. P. Fekrogha on Wednesday for Killing a World Health Organisation worker, Bello Abdullahi and stealing his property.

Ibrahim Babangida was found guilty on all four counts by the court martial, which sat at the Command Officers Mess 1, Asokoro, Abuja.

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The convict was sentenced to 40 years imprisonment on count one and was given an additional five years on count two, three, and four. The terms are to run concurrently.

The court was informed that Ibrahim, shot and killed Abdullahi with his AK47 rifle while on deployment on Operation Mesa to fight banditry in Zamfara State, at about 10pm on August 11, 2014, without justification.

He also broke into Abdullahi’s apartment located at Gidan-Dari, Anka LGA, Zamfara State, and stole his Gionee E3 phone and a Nokia handset and equally took away a Honda Accord car that belonged to the deceased containing a laptop computer and N6,000, which he drove to Kaduna where his family resides and was using it before investigators arrested him.

The President of the General Court Martial disclosed that the sentence was subject to confirmation by the Nigerian Army.

Members of the GCM includes Brigs. Gen. J. Ochai, P. Pearse, E. Ikomi, A. Okpodu, S. Makulo; Cols. M. Ibrahim, L. Abubakar, M. Yusuf and the Judge Advocate, Capt. K. Ogili.

The Prosecution Council for the Nigerian Army was led by Maj. Dipreye Biambo while the Defence Counsel for the accused soldier was led by Felix Jimba.