Boko Haram Leader Hussaini Isma’il Sentenced to 20 Years as Court Confirms Guilty Plea After Video Evidence
A senior figure in the Boko Haram insurgency, Hussaini Isma’il popularly known as Maitangaran, has been convicted and handed a 20-year prison term by the Federal High Court in Abuja after years of trial setbacks, witness testimonies, and the presentation of incriminating video evidence.
Justice Emeka Nwite delivered the judgment on Tuesday, finding Isma’il guilty on all four terrorism-related counts brought against him by the Federal Government. PulseNets learnt that the ruling followed a dramatic turn in court, where the defendant abruptly opted to change his plea to guilty after previously maintaining his innocence.
In the sentencing breakdown, the court imposed a 15-year term on the first count, and 20 years each on counts two, three and four—amounting to 75 years. However, Justice Nwite ordered the sentences to run concurrently from the date of Isma’il’s arrest.
The judge directed that “the convict shall serve his term in a correctional facility designated by the Comptroller-General and thereafter undergo rehabilitation and deradicalisation at an approved government centre before reintegration into society.”
Court documents obtained by PulseNets show that Isma’il’s sudden decision to retake his plea was triggered by a video played in open court during a previous sitting. The footage captured him issuing instructions and rallying Boko Haram fighters ahead of coordinated attacks.
The case was initially before retired Justice Anwuli Chikere before being reassigned to Justice Nwite. Proceedings had stalled over multiple appeals and a trial-within-trial to determine whether Isma’il’s extra-judicial statements were voluntarily made.
When the trial finally commenced, the prosecution—led by E. Aguda from the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation—called five witnesses, including two Department of State Services operatives and survivors of the attacks. PulseNets learnt that the testimony of the fifth witness was pivotal, prompting the defendant’s shift to a guilty plea.
Following the confession, defence counsel P. B. Onijah of the Legal Aid Council pleaded for leniency, saying the defendant was remorseful. According to Onijah, “my client has accepted responsibility and does not wish to further delay the court.”
Justice Nwite, however, held that the prosecution had successfully established all elements of the offences.
The amended charge, filed on October 3, 2023, detailed Isma’il’s involvement in a series of deadly attacks spanning 2014 to 2018. In count one, he was accused of openly identifying as a Boko Haram member in Brithi village, Borno State, in 2018—an offence under Section 16(1) of the Terrorism Prevention (Amendment) Act, 2013.
Count two linked him to the 2016 Kano Central Mosque attack, where he and other suspects at large recorded a video confessing to the assault that claimed numerous innocent lives.
Count three accused him of participating in a 2014 attack on the Mobile Police Base along Kabuga Road, Kano State, which resulted in the deaths of police personnel.
Also Read: ISWAP–Boko Haram War Escalates in Lake Chad Basin as Rival Factions Battle for Strategic Control
Count four alleged his involvement in another 2014 raid on the Ungwa Uku Police Station, also in Kano, where officers were killed.
All offences were charged under Section 1(2)(a)(e) of the Terrorism Prevention (Amendment) Act, 2013.
