TDJustice Hauwa Yilwa of the Federal High Court, Abuja, has sentenced a woman, Halima Haliru Umar, to 21 years imprisonment after finding her guilty of unlawful possession of 302 rounds of AK-47 live ammunition and attempting to support acts of terrorism.
The conviction followed her arraignment before the court on March 11 on a four-count charge filed against her by the Department of State Services (DSS), which arrested her in Plateau State during an intelligence operation.
According to court proceedings, the defendant pleaded guilty to counts three and four of the charge during her arraignment.
The charges related to unlawful possession of ammunition and attempting to provide support capable of facilitating terrorist activities.
Following her guilty plea, the prosecution reviewed the facts of the case before the court.
The prosecution outlined how the defendant was found in possession of the ammunition and the circumstances surrounding her arrest.
Justice Yilwa subsequently adjourned the matter for judgment on the two counts admitted by the defendant.
In her judgment, Justice Yilwa held that Umar’s decision to plead guilty amounted to an admission of the allegations brought against her by the prosecution.
The judge noted that the convict did not challenge the evidence presented in court and failed to provide any defence to contradict the prosecution’s case.
“The defendant voluntarily admitted the facts as presented by the prosecution,” the judge stated while delivering the judgment.
Following the conviction, defence counsel, Hamza Dantani, pleaded with the court to exercise leniency in sentencing his client.
He described Umar as a first-time offender who had shown remorse for her actions and cooperated with the judicial process by admitting guilt to the charges rather than prolonging the trial unnecessarily.
Dantani also appealed to the court on humanitarian grounds, informing the judge that the convict is a nursing mother with a one-year-old child who was reportedly arrested alongside her.
Counsel for the prosecution, Caliistus Eze, confirmed to the court that there was no record of any previous criminal conviction against the defendant.
Justice Yilwa briefly suspended proceedings before returning to pronounce sentence.
The court sentenced Umar to 20 years imprisonment on count three and one year imprisonment on count four.
The judge, however, adjourned the case until July 9 for the continuation of proceedings on counts one and two of the charge, to which the defendant had pleaded not guilty.
The remaining counts are expected to proceed to full trial as the prosecution seeks to establish further allegations linked to the case.
