The Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced Hussaini Ismaila, a leader of the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP), to 20 years in prison for terrorism-related offences.

Justice Emeka Nwite delivered the judgment on Tuesday after Ismaila, also known as Mai Tangaran, changed his plea from not guilty to guilty on four counts under the Terrorism Prevention (Amendment) Act, 2013.

Ismaila was accused of orchestrating coordinated attacks on police formations in Kano State in 2012, targeting the Police Headquarters in Bompai, the Mobile Police Base on Kabuga Road, Pharm Centre Police Station, and Angwa Uku Police Station, leaving several people injured.

He was arrested on August 31, 2017, at Tsamiyya Babba Village in Gezawa Local Government Area of Kano State.

The trial experienced delays due to interlocutory appeals and a trial-within-trial to determine the voluntariness of his extra-judicial statements. The Department of State Services (DSS) called five witnesses, including operatives and eyewitnesses.

Following the testimony of the fifth witness, Ismaila changed his plea. His lawyer, P. B. Onijah of the Legal Aid Council, urged the court to temper justice with mercy, noting that Ismaila had expressed remorse and pleaded guilty to avoid further delays.

Justice Nwite found him guilty on all four counts, sentencing him to 15 years on the first count and 20 years each on the remaining counts, to run concurrently. The sentence takes effect from the date of his arrest, August 31, 2017. The court also ordered Ismaila to undergo rehabilitation and deradicalisation upon completion of his term.

Meanwhile, the trial of two alleged Ansaru leaders, Mahmud Usman and Abubakar Abba, has been adjourned to January 15, 2026. The defendants face a 32-count charge filed by the DSS, with alleged offences including terrorism, kidnapping, illegal mining, terrorism financing, and arms procurement committed between 2015 and 2024.

Usman has pleaded guilty to one count related to economic crime but denied the remaining charges. He had previously been sentenced to 15 years for engaging in illegal mining to fund terrorism and kidnapping. Abba has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

The charges allege that the duo bombed the Wawa Military Cantonment in Niger State, trained in weapons handling and improvised explosives, kidnapped security personnel—including a Customs officer and an Immigration officer who was later killed—and collected millions of naira in ransom payments to procure arms and train followers in Mali and Sudan.

During Wednesday’s proceedings, defence counsel B. I. Bakum requested that the defendants be transferred to a correctional centre to facilitate trial access, but DSS counsel David Kaswe opposed the request, citing procedural requirements. Justice Nwite adjourned the matter to January 15, 2026, directing the defence to follow proper protocol in requesting access to their clients.