A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced kidnap kingpin, Hamisu Bala, aka Wadume, to seven years imprisonment.
Justice Binta Nyako convicted Wadume of two of the 13-count charges against him alongside two others.
The court also convicted Aliyu Dadje, a police inspector, who was the station officer at the police headquarters at Ibi Local Government Area of Taraba State, to three years’ imprisonment for tampering with the record to conceal a crime.
Dadje, who was a Station Officer at the Ibi Divisional Police Headquarters, Ibi Local Government Area, Taraba State was said to have, in August 2019, “willfully tampered with the entry made by the leader of the IGP IRT team, Inspector Felix Adolije, by tearing off the entry page to cover up for Captain Tijani Ahmed Balarabe and his team” upon knowing that an offence of terrorism had been committed by Capt. Balarabe and his team, who attacked and killed three members of the IGP IRT team and two civilians who were in Ibi, Taraba State to make lawful arrest.
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Other defendants in the charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/30/2020 are: Aliyu Dadje (a police inspector), Auwalu Bala (aka omo razor), Uba Bala (aka Uba Delu), Bashir Wazlri (aka baba runs), Zubairu Abdullahi (aka Basho) and Rayyanu Abdul.
Justice Nyako equally convicted and sentenced Uba Bala and Zubairu Abdullahi to seven years each on counts three, four, five, six and 11, while she discharged and acquitted Omo Razor and Baba Runs, for want of evidence.
Justice Nyako’s judgement was delivered on July 22, and made available to journalists on Sunday.
Wadume and others were arraigned by the Attorney General of the Federation with charges of kidnapping, murder, terrorism and illegal arms.
The charges followed the killing of three police officers and two civillians on August 6, 2019 by some soldiers.
The policemen, who were from the Intelligence Response Team, Abuja, had arrested Wadume at Ibi before they were ambushed on the road by the military men.
Ten military officers earlier charged with the convicts, whose trial were separated for departmental reasons, are: Captain Tijjani Balarabe; Staff Sgt David Isaiah; Sgt Ibrahim Mohammed; Corporal Bartholomew Obanye; Private Mohammed Nura; Lance Corporal Okorozie Gideon; Corporal Marcus Michael; Lance Corporal Nvenaweimoeimi Akpagra; Staff Sgt Abdulahi Adamu and Private Ebele Emmanuel.
