TD A man identified as Hassan, who has made a series of allegations concerning alleged links between political figures and criminal groups in northern Nigeria, has released another video he says was secretly recorded as evidence of illicit activities.
The latest footage, circulated on social media, appears to show a room containing a person lying on a bed alongside what Hassan describes as Nigerian passports and official documents.
In the recording, Hassan counts what he says are 15 passports belonging to people he identifies as bandits.
However, the identities of the people whose passports are shown, the circumstances under which the documents were obtained, and the location and date of the recording have not been independently established.
The video also does not, by itself, establish that the passports belong to bandits or that the people seen in the room are involved in terrorism, banditry or any other criminal activity.
Hassan Says He Nearly Got Caught
In the recording, Hassan appears to explain that he was collecting the footage as intelligence and evidence.
He said he was recording because he believed the people present were suspects and wanted to document what he described as their relationship with an individual identified as Abdulaziz.
Hassan then directed the camera towards a collection of passports.
He counted them one after another, reaching 15, while describing them as passports belonging to bandits.
The recording appears to have been made covertly, and Hassan suggested that he was concerned about being discovered while filming.
The circumstances surrounding the recording could not independently be verified by This Dawn News.
Video Adds to Series of Allegations by Hassan
The latest footage is the newest in a series of disclosures attributed to Hassan concerning alleged links between individuals in northern Nigeria and armed criminal groups.
His allegations have previously focused on Senator Shehu Buba Umar, representing Bauchi South Senatorial District, whom Hassan has accused of facilitating or supporting criminal elements.
Hassan has also alleged that people linked to notorious bandit commander Dogo Gide were brought to Abuja for specialised training.
Those claims have not been independently established.
BusinessDay reported in September that Hassan had alleged he possessed photographs and video recordings showing Umar interacting with people whom he identified as bandits. The report noted that the allegations had generated controversy but remained unverified.
Previous Claim Involving Weapons
In an earlier video reported by This Dawn News, Hassan alleged that suspected bandits collected guns, ammunition and other materials from a senator’s residence shortly before a deadly attack in Benue State.
Hassan claimed that he secretly recorded the alleged activity after being instructed to surrender his phone.
He said he subsequently obtained another handset and concealed it inside a toilet in the compound before recording the footage.
Hassan described the recording as evidence of weapons being collected before the alleged attack.
Those allegations have also not been independently verified.
Earlier Passport Video Was Found Misleading
The latest disclosure comes against the backdrop of an earlier controversy involving a video showing people at what was presented online as Senator Buba’s residence.
A PRNigeria fact-check found that the viral material had combined two unrelated videos.
According to the fact-check, one segment showed Kaduna-based businessmen and Hajj pilgrims visiting Buba in 2023, while another showed different individuals displaying international passports.
PRNigeria concluded that the combined presentation created a misleading impression that the people displaying the passports were connected to the individuals visiting the senator.
This is significant in assessing the latest footage because the existence of passports in a video does not, without additional evidence, establish who owns them or what criminal activity, if any, they are connected to.
Buba Denies Allegations by Hassan
Senator Shehu Buba has repeatedly denied allegations linking him to banditry or terrorism.
In September, Buba said videos circulating against him had been manipulated and presented out of context.
He specifically maintained that footage showing people at his residence involved Hajj returnees who visited him in 2023, while a separate clip showed different people displaying passports.
Buba also challenged journalists and members of the public to independently verify the material before drawing conclusions from it.
Premium Times reported that Buba has described the allegations as politically motivated and said he had taken legal steps in relation to the controversy.
Calls for DSS Investigation
The repeated allegations have nevertheless generated calls for Nigeria’s security agencies to investigate the claims.
An earlier report by the Foundation for Investigative Journalism said the Department of State Services (DSS), Nigerian military and Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) had not publicly responded to Hassan’s allegations at the time of its report.
The latest video has renewed questions among commentators about whether security agencies have examined Hassan’s material and, if so, whether any investigation has produced findings.
However, the absence of a public statement should not itself be interpreted as proof that no intelligence or security investigation is taking place.
What the Latest Video Does — and Does Not — Establish
The new recording potentially contains material that could be investigated, but several crucial questions remain unanswered.
Investigators would need to establish:
- When and where the footage was recorded.
- Who is the person seen on the bed.
- Who owns the passports and documents shown.
- Whether the passports are genuine and current.
- Whether the individuals named or represented by the documents are connected to armed groups.
- Who had possession of the documents and why.
- Whether the room can be independently linked to any individual or organisation.
- Whether the original video contains metadata capable of establishing its provenance.
- Whether surveillance footage, witnesses, communications records or other intelligence corroborate Hassan’s account.
A forensic examination of the original file could also help determine whether the footage has been edited or otherwise manipulated.
Previous Allegations Remain Disputed
The controversy surrounding Hassan’s disclosures has produced sharply conflicting accounts.
Hassan presents his recordings as evidence of criminal activity and says he has taken personal risks to obtain them.
Buba and his supporters have rejected the allegations and accused opponents and social-media operators of spreading misinformation and attempting to damage his reputation.
Independent reporting has confirmed that some material previously circulated in connection with the allegations was misleadingly presented. PRNigeria, for example, established that two unrelated videos had been combined in one viral presentation.
At the same time, that finding does not automatically determine the authenticity or falsity of every separate recording subsequently released by Hassan.
Each piece of evidence therefore requires independent authentication.
No Established Finding of Terrorism Sponsorship
At the time of publication, the available reporting reviewed by This Dawn News does not establish a court judgment finding Senator Buba guilty of sponsoring terrorism or banditry.
The allegations remain allegations unless and until competent authorities independently authenticate the evidence and establish criminal responsibility through an appropriate investigative or judicial process.
The latest video may therefore raise questions requiring investigation, but the presence of passports and documents in the footage is not, on its own, proof that the individuals involved are bandits or that any named person sponsored terrorism.
What remains particularly important is whether the original footage can be authenticated and whether independent evidence supports Hassan’s account.
