DSS files terrorism charges against Ansaru leaders linked to Kuje prison break

The Department of State Services (DSS) has filed multiple terrorism charges against two commanders of the Ansaru terrorist group, an Al-Qaeda-linked group.

According to NTA, Mahmud Usman (aka Abu Bara’a/Abbas/Mukhtar), the self-styled Emir of Ansaru; and Mahmud al-Nigeri (aka Malam Mamuda), Bara’s deputy and chief of staff, who were recently arrested during operations by security forces, are facing charges bordering on leading the terror organisation, financing its activities, recruiting fighters, and coordinating violent attacks across Nigeria.

The DSS is said to have expedited its investigation to ensure a speedy prosecution, in line with the directive of the agency’s director-general, who emphasised professionalism, justice, and respect for human rights in handling terrorism cases.

Their arraignment before the federal high court in Abuja is expected in the coming days.

In July 2022, Ansaru militants were linked to the attack on Kuje prison in Abuja, where over 600 inmates, including 64 Boko Haram suspects, escaped.

Nuhu Ribadu, national security adviser (NSA), had described the two arrested commanders as masterminds of the jailbreak.

Abu Bara was described as the coordinator of terrorist sleeper cells across Nigeria and the mastermind of several high-profile kidnappings and armed robberies used to fund terrorism.

His deputy, Malam Mamuda, was said to have 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.

The NSA added that the suspects were also named in the 2013 abduction of French engineer Francis Collomp in Katsina, the 2019 kidnapping of Musa Uba (Magajin Garin Daura), and the abduction of the Emir of Wawa.

Ribadu, who described their arrest as a turning point, said the suspects have networks across Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso.