Kidnappers Of Nigerian Female Journalist Bag Life Imprisonment

AHigh Court in Yola, Adamawa State has convicted and sentenced three kidnappers of a female journalist, Amra Ahmad Diska, to life imprisonment. Justice Danladi Mohammed on Wednesday sentenced the trio, Muhammad Habib Maki (aka Dram), Barde Usman and Umar Mammanjoda (aka Umar Mbamba) to life imprisonment after they were convicted.

The journalist, a staff member of Adamawa Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), Yola, Amra Ahmad Diska, was abducted on May 4, 2021, at her residence in the Yola-South Local Government Area. She was later freed by her abductors after payment of an undisclosed ransom, as widely reported on May 31, 2023.

While sentencing them on Wednesday, Justice Mohammed also sentenced one of the accomplices to 10 years imprisonment with an option of N1 million fine and sent one other to five years in prison without an option of a fine. Similarly, Husseini Hamman (aka Awilo) was sentenced to 5 years imprisonment without an option of a fine, while Umar Abubakar (aka Naibi) bagged a 10 year prison term or N1 million option of a fine.

Husseini was sentenced to five years because, on the day of his arraignment alongside four other convicts, he pleaded guilty to the offences and made his trial easier for the court, hence the mitigation of sentence. While Umar Abubakar (aka Naibi), the 5th convict got a 10 year jail term for the offence of abatement. He was the one who furnished other convicts with information about the female journalist.

The five convicts; Dogo Chongel Pullori, Dabo and Bello (still at large) conspired and abducted Ahmadu Njoboli and Amra Ahmad Diska from their various homes in Yola South LGA. The convicts also abducted Ahmadu Njoboli on September 11, 2021 detained him for 19 days and collected the sum of N5 million as a ransom before releasing him.

Five out of eight kidnappers were later apprehended and arraigned before the court on October 7, 2021. Four of them pleaded not guilty, while one admitted having committed the offence.The female journalist was nursing a baby when she was abducted.