An Ekiti State High Court has sentenced two men arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) to death by hanging after convicting them for the kidnapping of a staff member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC).

The convicts, Ibrahim Abubakar and Abdullahi Abubakar, were found guilty by the Ekiti State High Court I, Fajuyi, Ado-Ekiti, in suit number HAD/124C/2022.

A third defendant, Usman Abubakar, was discharged and acquitted after the court ruled that there was insufficient evidence linking him to the crime.

The case stemmed from the abduction of Omoboade Adesina, a female NYSC staff member, who was kidnapped in Ekiti State on April 22, 2022.

The DSS subsequently arrested the suspects and prosecuted the case.

Delivering judgment, the Chief Judge of Ekiti State, Justice Lekan Ogunmoye, sentenced Ibrahim Abubakar and Abdullahi Abubakar to death by hanging, while discharging the third defendant.

Justice Ogunmoye commended the diligence of the DSS prosecution team for proving the case beyond reasonable doubt.

The judge specifically cited the identification parade conducted by the DSS and the analysis of Call Data Records (CDR) during the investigation as crucial evidence that helped secure the conviction.

The judgment marks another significant prosecution success for the DSS in its efforts to combat violent crimes across the country.

The conviction follows a recent judgment by a Sokoto State High Court, which sentenced three men to death after convicting them on charges related to terrorism and cross-border arms trafficking. It also comes after the successful prosecution of a kidnapping suspect in Kogi State and several other criminal cases handled by the Service.

Security analysts say the string of convictions highlights the growing role of intelligence-led investigations in securing successful prosecutions of kidnapping, terrorism and other organised crimes.

The DSS reiterated its commitment to ensuring that perpetrators of kidnapping, terrorism and related offences are brought to justice and made to face the full weight of the law.