Court sets January 27 for judgment in trial of alleged terrorist negotiator Tukur Mamu

Justice Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court in Abuja will deliver judgment on January 27 in the trial of Tukur Mamu, who faces terrorism-related charges and an allegation of illegal firearm possession. The Federal Government alleges that the Islamic scholar and Desert Herald publisher collected $420,000, 21 million naira and a 500,000-naira ransom payment from families of victims of the Abuja-Kaduna train attack on behalf of Boko Haram. Arrested in Cairo in September 2022, Mamu denies the allegations; after six prosecution witnesses testified, both sides adopted their final arguments. Defence lawyer Johnson Usman urged the court to acquit Mamu, while prosecutor David Kaswe argued that the evidence supported a conviction.