IPOB Leader, Nnamdi Kanu Sentenced To Life Imprisonment

The federal high court sitting in Abuja, on Thursday, sentenced separatist leader Nnamdi Kanu to life in prison after convicting him on all seven terrorism-related charges at the end of a decade-long trial that has inflamed tensions in the country’s southeast.

The judge, Justice James Omotosho, held that the prosecution was able to establish the ingredients of the charge against him.

In his ruling, he said he was satisfied that Kanu had made a series of broadcasts to incite violence and killings, as part of his campaign for a separate state in south-east Nigeria, known as Biafra.

Kanu was convicted on all seven charges he faced. As well as terrorism, they included treason and involvement with an outlawed movement.

Omotosho, in his ruling, sentenced the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) to life imprisonment.

Omotosho declined the prosecutors’ request for a death penalty, saying he must “temper justice with mercy” despite Kanu’s arrogance and lack of remorse.

Kanu, who has been in custody since his controversial re-arrest in Kenya in 2021, shouted angrily during the proceedings and was kicked out of court ahead of the ruling. 

Thursday’s judgment followed months of legal drama that included four different judges. The government closed its case after calling five witnesses, but Kanu refused to open his defence, arguing that Nigeria’s terrorism law had been repealed and that the charges were invalid.

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