The Department of State Services (DSS) has filed terrorism charges against two top commanders of Ansaru, a terror group with reported links to Al-Qaeda, over their alleged roles in violent attacks across Nigeria, including the 2022 jailbreak at Kuje prison.
The suspects, identified as Mahmud Usman (also known as Abu Bara’a Abbas/Mukhtar), described by security agents as the self-styled Emir of Ansaru, and his deputy Mahmud Al-Nigeri (alias Malam Mamuda), were recently captured during intelligence-led operations.
According to the DSS, both men face multiple terrorism-related charges, including leading and financing a terrorist organisation, recruiting fighters, and plotting violent operations across the country. Their arraignment is expected soon at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The charges follow their dramatic arrest, which was first announced three weeks ago by Nuhu Ribadu, National Security Adviser (NSA).
Ribadu described Usman as the “coordinator of terrorist sleeper cells across Nigeria” and the mastermind of several high-profile kidnappings and armed robberies used to finance terror activities.
His deputy, Al-Nigeri, reportedly leads the “Mahmudawa” cell, operating around the Kainji National Park, a stretch covering Niger and Kwara States up to the Benin Republic.
Ribadu revealed that Al-Nigeri trained in Libya between 2013 and 2015 under foreign jihadist instructors from Egypt, Tunisia, and Algeria, specialising in weapons handling and improvised explosive device (IED) fabrication.
Both men are accused of orchestrating the July 2022 attack on Kuje Correctional Centre, during which more than 600 inmates, including high-profile Boko Haram suspects, escaped.
Security operatives believe they also spearheaded multiple deadly attacks on civilians, security forces, and critical infrastructure in recent years.
The DSS stressed that their arraignment marks a major step in Nigeria’s broader counterterrorism efforts, vowing to dismantle terrorist networks operating across the country.
