Adamawa Court Sentences Three Kidnappers to Death

An Adamawa State High Court has sentenced three men to death for kidnapping two Catholic priests in February 2025.

Justice Christopher Mapeo delivered the judgment on Thursday. He found Taledo Demiel, Namomai Medan and Mikaila Yusuf guilty of several offences linked to the abduction of Reverend Fathers Matthew Dutsemi and Abraham Sauman.

The offences included criminal conspiracy, kidnapping, armed robbery, harbouring a kidnapped person and negotiating to receive ransom for the priests’ release. The court sentenced the three men to death for kidnapping, armed robbery and other offences. The judgment also marks the seventh death sentence secured by the Department of State Services (DSS) in 2026.

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Terrorists Attack Adamawa Governor’s Hometown — Adamawa map. Credit: Guardian Nigeria.

On May 20, 2026, an Ekiti State High Court sentenced Ibrahim Abubakar and Abdullahi Abubakar to death by hanging for kidnapping. Similarly, on June 3, a High Court in Abuja sentenced four men to death by hanging for their roles in the June 2022 killing of worshippers at St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State.

The four men were identified as Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Alqasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik and Abdulkareem Idris. On June 15, a Katsina State High Court sentenced a female arms courier, Hauwa’u Mukhtar, to death by hanging. The following day, a Kogi State High Court handed the same sentence to Jibrin Halilu for kidnapping and murdering his neighbour in Obajana.

On June 22, a Sokoto State High Court sentenced three men, Muhammed Yusuf Sallau, Jabbi Ahlaji Yale and Kabiru Muhammed, to death by hanging for terrorism and transporting arms. More recently, on September 28, a Sokoto State High Court sentenced Ibrahim Usman, also known as Dan Iyali, to death by hanging over his role in the killing of three kidnapped people in the state.

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