The Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced three suspects linked to the abduction of pupils and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State to life imprisonment.

According to reports,
Justice Salim Ibrahim ordered that the life sentence should take effect from the date of the convicts’ arrest.

He handed down the sentence after convicting Abdulrazak Umar (also known as Abu Khalifa/Abu Khalid), Yunusa Musa (Yunusa bin Musa) and Shamsu Adamu Sani (Abu Itisar) on charges connected to terrorism and the kidnapping incident.

The defendants had earlier pleaded guilty to some of the allegations brought against them by the Federal Government, while denying others.

They were arraigned on a 10-count charge bordering on terrorism, kidnapping, concealment of information, incitement and illegal mining.

The Federal Government accused the trio of belonging to Darul Salam, an affiliate of Jamaatu Asarul Muslima Fi Bilandis Sudan (Ansaru), a proscribed terrorist organisation in Nigeria.

The prosecution alleged that the defendants, all from Suleja Local Government Area of Niger State, conspired with other suspects, including Muhammad Sani, Jibril Mohammed and Ibrahim Khabab, between January and May 2026 to facilitate the abduction of school children and teachers in Oyo State.

They were also accused of concealing information about the identities and activities of the alleged masterminds of the attack despite being aware of the plot.

During proceedings, the defendants admitted to concealing information about those responsible for the school attack and acknowledged their membership of Darul Salam.

While all three pleaded guilty to counts four and six of the charge, only Umar admitted guilt on additional counts bordering on providing training and instructions to members of the group through a WhatsApp platform titled “The Oneness of Allah is the Foundation of Peace”.

However, they pleaded not guilty to the remaining counts.

Following their guilty pleas, the Director of Public Prosecution of the Federation, Mr Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, who led the prosecution team, urged the court to sentence the defendants on the counts they admitted.

Before the sentencing, counsel for the defendants pleaded with the court for leniency, describing them as first-time offenders who had shown remorse by pleading guilty.

The defence counsel argued that the charges they admitted were not directly related to the kidnapping itself and appealed to the court to consider their family responsibilities, noting that they were married men with children and had aged parents dependent on them.

He urged the court to give them an opportunity for a second chance.

However, prosecution counsel argued that the convicts were aware of the activities of those involved in the attack and, as responsible citizens, ought to have reported the information to security authorities.

The Federal Government had alleged that the defendants committed offences contrary to provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, including sections relating to conspiracy, aiding terrorism, concealment of terrorist activities and membership of a proscribed organisation.

The court, after considering the submissions of both parties, convicted the defendants and sentenced them to life imprisonment.

On May 15, gunmen invaded Community Grammar School, Baptist Nursery and Primary School, and L.A. Primary School in the Esiele and Yawota communities of Oriire LGA, abducting 46 people comprising 39 pupils and seven teachers.

The Assistant Headmaster of L.A. Primary School, Joel Adesiyan, was killed while attempting to escape during the raid, while a Mathematics teacher, Michael Oyedokun, was killed by his abductors.

The remaining victims regained their freedom on July 10 following an intelligence-led military operation targeting the kidnappers’ hideouts in the Old Oyo National Park.

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has revealed that the Nigeria Police Force and five federal ministries and agencies have the highest number of suspected fake workers uncovered during its payroll verification exercise.

ICPC Chairman, Musa Adamu Aliyu (SAN), disclosed the findings while speaking on the commission’s investigation into payroll fraud across Federal Government institutions, according to a BBC Pidgin report on Wednesday.

The commission said it discovered suspected 908 ghost workers in at least 50 ministries, departments and agencies, recovering about N942m allegedly paid as fraudulent salaries.

According to the ICPC, ghost workers are fictitious names inserted into government payrolls to receive salaries fraudulently.

In some cases, salaries are allegedly diverted by officials who add relatives or associates to the payroll despite them not being employed.

Aliyu said investigators uncovered one case involving a man who allegedly placed the names of his wife, son and mother-in-law on the payroll while also collecting the salaries of 12 workers.

Among the institutions identified, the Nigeria Police Force recorded the highest number of suspected fake workers.

“For this operation, we identified 570 people whom we suspect are among the fake workers collecting salaries without working,” the ICPC chairman said about the police data.

The National Water Resources Authority followed with 80 suspected fake workers.

“For this agency, we identified 80 names of people collecting salaries even though they are not workers of the agency,” Aliyu said.

The Federal Ministry of Works recorded 56 suspected fake workers, while the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had 24.

The Ministry of Defence was found to have 19 suspected fake workers.

“For the Ministry of Defence, we identified 19 people acting as fake workers,” the ICPC chairman said.

Other affected institutions include the Federal Ministry of Electricity and the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, with 17 suspected fake workers each; the Federal Ministry of Health with 15; and the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation with 12.

The Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and the Federal Ministry of Interior were also listed among institutions affected by the payroll fraud, although the ICPC did not disclose the number of suspected fake workers found in the two offices.

1. The investigation into the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council intensified on Wednesday as the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission commenced interrogation of the alleged founder of the disputed agency, Adeniyi Adeyemi, inside police detention.

The PFIPC controversy erupted after allegations that Adeyemi presented himself as the Director-General of a presidential body that several government institutions said they neither created nor recognised, while questions were raised over alleged forged documents, bank accounts and the council’s inclusion in budget proposals.

2. Dangote Petroleum Refinery has resumed gantry loading of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, in naira after a week-long suspension, while raising its ex-depot petrol price to N1,215 per litre. The refinery had suspended gantry and coastal loading on July 15 after introducing a dollar-denominated pricing template for refined petroleum products.

3. The five Southeast governors have resolved to work for the re-election of President Bola Tinubu’s re-election next year, Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma said yesterday. Uzodimma, who chairs the South East Governors’ Forum (SEGF), spoke at a meeting with the Imo State Council of Elders and Council of Traditional Rulers at the New EXCO Chambers, Government House, Owerri. He cited infrastructure projects initiated in the zone by the administration, saying the governors’ decision was based on “verifiable facts” of the administration’s record in the Southeast.

4. Nigeria has dropped to 90th position on the latest Henley Passport Index, with holders of her passport able to access 44 destinations without obtaining a visa in advance. The July 2026 global ranking, released by Henley & Partners on Tuesday, ranked the Nigerian passport 90th out of 199 assessed worldwide, with a visa-free score of 44.

5. The Naira on Wednesday depreciated to N1,413 per dollar in the parallel market from N1,409 per dollar on Tuesday. But the naira appreciated to N1,369 per dollar in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market, NFEM.

6. Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has declared his support for President Bola Tinubu and the Rainbow Coalition, a political movement led by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, ahead of the 2027 general elections. Fubara made the declaration on Tuesday during the groundbreaking ceremony for the reconstruction and equipping of the Riven Medical Facility, a public-private sector pharmaceutical factory in Rivers State.

7. The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission has identified the Nigeria Police Force and five federal ministries and agencies as having the highest number of suspected fake workers uncovered during its payroll verification exercise. ICPC Chairman, Musa Adamu Aliyu, SAN, disclosed the findings while speaking on the commission’s investigation into payroll fraud across Federal Government institutions, according to a BBC Pidgin report on Wednesday.

8. United States President Donald Trump has written to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, commending him on his decisive leadership “on behalf of the Nigerian people.” This was made known in a statement by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy on Wednesday.

9. A mother, Mrs Zainab Musa, residing in the Ketu area of Lagos State, has cried out over what she described as an orchestrated attempt by some police officers to frustrate efforts to secure justice for her 15-year-old daughter, who was allegedly raped inside a tutorial class in Ketu. gathered from the survivor’s mother on Tuesday that the suspect (name withheld), who was the survivor’s lesson teacher, allegedly threatened to kill the teenager if she disclosed the incident to anyone.

10. The National Security Adviser, NSA, Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Accountant-General of the Federation, Minister of Foreign Affairs and other top government officials are expected to appear before the House of Representatives Ad Hoc Committee investigating the legal basis, operations and budgetary inclusion of phantom Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, PFIPC today.