Barely 24 hours after a Katsina State High Court sentenced a female arms courier arrested by the Department of State Services, DSS, to death, a High Court in Kogi State has also handed down the death penalty to a man prosecuted by the DSS for kidnapping and murdering his neighbour, a hotel owner in Obajana.
The Katsina and Kogi judgments came less than two weeks after a Federal High Court in Abuja sentenced four men arrested by the DSS to death over the June 5, 2022 terrorist attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State.
In the Kogi case, Justice Abdul Nicodemus Awulu, sitting at the state High Court, on Tuesday found Jibrin Halilu guilty of conspiracy and kidnapping, contrary to Sections 12, 6(1), and 4(3)(a) of the Kogi State Kidnapping and Other Related Offences Prohibition Law, 2023. He was subsequently sentenced to death.
According to the prosecution, Halilu and other members of his armed gang stormed Ever Ready Hotel in Angwa-Tiv, Obajana, on March 23, 2023, and abducted its proprietor, Uche Andrew Offo. Although Offo’s family paid the N2.5 million ransom demanded by the kidnappers, he was still killed.
The DSS prosecutor told the court that Halilu was arrested by operatives of the Service on December 4, 2025.
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A source said DSS investigations showed that while in captivity, Offo identified Halilu—his neighbour—as one of his abductors. The source added that despite receiving the N2.5 million ransom from Offo’s family, Halilu still went ahead to kill him.
The source further disclosed that DSS investigations also linked Halilu and his gang to the April 2, 2023 abduction of Ibrahim Abdullahi, a resident of Oshokoshoko Community in Lokoja, from whom the gang allegedly collected a N5 million ransom.
The Kogi and Katsina convictions followed the June 3, 2026 landmark judgment of a Federal High Court in Abuja, which sentenced four men to death for their roles in the Owo church attack.
Those sentenced to death by hanging were Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Al Qasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik, and Abdulhaleem Idris. The attack claimed the lives of more than 40 worshippers and left over 100 others injured.
Describing the convictions as major legal victories for the DSS, the source said the judgments send a strong message that those involved in terrorism, kidnapping, and armed violence will be apprehended, prosecuted, and made to face the full weight of the law.
Crediblenewsng.com
