Kidnap kingpin Wadume sentenced to seven years imprisonment

A Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced a kidnap kingpin, Hamisu Bala, also known as Wadume, and two others, to seven years’ imprisonment.

Justice Binta Nyako convicted Wadume of two of the 13-count charges against him and two others.

Wadume was charged alongside Aliyu Dadje, a police inspector, Auwalu Bala, Uba Bala, Bashir Wazlri, Zubairu Abdullahi and Rayyanu Abdul.

They were prosecuted by the office of the attorney-general of the federation on a 13-count charge.

The charges followed the killing of three police officers and two civillians on August 6, 2019 by some soldiers.

The policemen, who were from the Intelligence Response Team, Abuja, had arrested Wadume at Ibi before they were ambushed on the road by the military men.

Ten military officers earlier charged with the convicts, whose trial were separated for departmental reasons, are: Captain Tijjani Balarabe; Staff Sgt David Isaiah; Sgt Ibrahim Mohammed; Corporal Bartholomew Obanye; Private Mohammed Nura; Lance Corporal Okorozie Gideon; Corporal Marcus Michael; Lance Corporal Nvenaweimoeimi Akpagra; Staff Sgt Abdulahi Adamu and Private Ebele Emmanuel.

The court also convicted Aliyu Dadje, a police inspector, who was the station officer at the police headquarters at Ibi Local Government Area of Taraba State, to three years’ imprisonment for tampering with the record to conceal a crime.

Beside Wadume and Dadje, others charged with them are Auwalu Bala (aka Omo Razor), Uba Bala (aka Uba Delu), Bashir Waziri (aka Baba Runs), Zubairu Abdullahi (aka Basho) and Rayyanu Abdul.

The judge also sentenced Delu, Abdullahi, and Abdul to seven years’ imprisonment, while she discharged and acquitted Omo Razor and Baba Runs, for want of evidence.

Binta Nyako, the presiding judge, delivered the judgment on July 22, but it was made available to the media on Sunday.

The judge convicted Wadume on counts two and 10 which border on escaping from lawful custody and unlawfully dealing in prohibited firearms.

Uba Bala and Abdullahi were also sentenced to seven years imprisonment each.

Dadje, a police inspector, was sentenced to three years for tampering with police records to conceal a crime. He was the station officer at the Ibi divisional police headquarters, Ibi LGA of Taraba state at the time of the crime.

Court records revealed that Dadje was said to have tampered with entries made by Felix Adolije, leader of the IGP IRT team in August 2019, by tearing off the entry page to cover up for Tijani Balarabe, an army captain, and his team who released Wadume and killed some of the officers who arrested him.

One Abdul, a resident in Kano, was sentenced to three years for harbouring Wadume after he escaped from police custody.

However, the court discharged and acquitted the third and fifth defendants, Auwal Bala and Bashir Waziri, for lack of evidence against them.