A Special Court-Martial of the Nigerian Army in Maiduguri, Borno State, has handed down severe sentences to four soldiers convicted of illegal arms trafficking, exposing a troubling nexus between security personnel, criminals, and terror groups.
The trial, held at the Officers’ Mess of the Theatre Command Headquarters, was presided over by Brigadier General Ugochukwu Unachukwu, Acting General Officer Commanding 7 Division and Commander of Sector 1, Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK). Delivering judgment, the Court-Martial’s president, Brigadier General Mohammed Abdullahi, sentenced Sergeant Raphael Ameh, Sergeant Ejiga Musa, and Lance Corporal Patrick Ocheje to life imprisonment, while Corporal Omitoye Rufus received 15 years behind bars.
The soldiers were convicted on multiple charges, including theft, unlawful arms dealing, and aiding the enemy, offences punishable under the Armed Forces Act.
Investigations revealed a shocking pattern of collusion. Sergeant Ameh, serving as an armourer at the 7 Division Garrison, conspired with a late colleague and police officers to siphon ammunition from the armoury. The stolen weapons were concealed in bags of beans and smuggled to Enugu and Ebonyi States for sale to criminals. Bank records tied him to more than 100 suspicious transactions between July 2022 and June 2024.
Sergeant Musa, armourer of the 195 Battalion, was found guilty of working with Ocheje and corrupt police operatives to sell an AK-47 rifle and large caches of ammunition, earning over ₦500,000 before his arrest while attempting to close another deal.
Corporal Rufus admitted selling 40 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition to a police officer, while Ocheje, deployed at a forward operating base in Molai, diverted ammunition during communal clashes and stole a fellow soldier’s rifle under the instructions of a police contact.
In a stern rebuke, Brigadier General Abdullahi labelled the convicted soldiers “bad eggs” who had disgraced the Army’s core values of loyalty, discipline, and honour, stressing that their actions posed a grave threat to ongoing counterinsurgency operations. He vowed that the Army would not tolerate “in whatever form or guise” the trafficking of arms to adversaries.
What you should know
The Maiduguri court-martial underscores the Army’s resolve to root out corruption within its ranks.
The convictions of four soldiers for collaborating with police officers and supplying arms to criminals and terrorists highlight the internal security risks Nigeria faces, even from within its own security institutions.
