Papiri School Abduction: Court Sentences 5 To 25 Years Imprisonment

Justice Binta Murtala-Nyako of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, has sentenced five persons arrested on May 31, 2026, by the Department of State Services (DSS) in connection with the November 21, 2025 attack on St. Mary’s Catholic School, Papiri, Niger State, to 25 years imprisonment each.

The court gave the verdict, yesterday after all the accused persons pleaded guilty to all four terrorism-related charges filed against them.

In the charge, they were accused of supporting act of terrorism, breaching both Section 16 of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, as well as the Firearms Act.

In Count One, they were accused of jointly conspiring to render assistance to a terrorist by agreeing and intentionally playing various roles towards conveying 15 AK 103 rifles as well as about 1,434 rounds of 7.62mm live ammunition from Diffa region, Republic of Niger to one Malam Ahmad, a member of the Boko Haram terrorist group based in Borgu, Niger State, and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 26(1) of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

In one of the arrests, DSS operatives recovered 15 AK-47s and 1,434 rounds of live ammunition tucked in sacks in a Volkswagen Golf car.

The recovered arms and ammunition were tendered in court.

The court ordered the forfeiture of the Golf car to the Nigerian government.

On November 21, 2025 gunmen on motorcycles stormed the Catholic Primary and Secondary Boarding School, and kidnapped school children and teachers.

While about 50 of the children managed to escape in the chaos that greeted the attack, the gunmen reportedly marched over 250 of the students for days into the Kainji Lake Reserve Forest.

The incident generated widespread anger and concern over the rising insecurity in the country.