The resumed trial of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), took place on Friday before Justice James Omotosho at the Federal High Court in Abuja.
The proceedings included cross-examination of the first prosecution witness, a Department of State Services (DSS) operative identified simply as AAA, who admitted he did not find any instrument of terrorism on the defendant.
The Federal Government’s request for witnesses to testify behind screens was approved by the court. The prosecution is led by Senior Advocate of Nigeria Adegboyega Awomolo, while former Attorney General of the Federation Kanu Agabi leads Kanu’s defence team.
During the session, AAA confirmed his presence in a video shown in court, stating that five DSS officers were in the room at the time, including himself. He said his role in the case was limited to arresting Kanu, taking his statement, and escorting him to Abuja for further investigation.
Asked about the items recovered from Kanu, AAA admitted none appeared offensive. He said he only analysed the defendant’s phone, but its contents were considered “immaterial to the case” and no analysis was presented in evidence.
When asked about the relevance of these items after more than a decade in DSS custody, AAA conceded, “Yes,” many had lost their usefulness. He also confirmed that a record exists for the items returned to Kanu, though he did not personally manage the records.
AAA testified that he found nothing violent on the lady accompanying Kanu and didn’t consider her presence as aiding terrorism. On whether he found “any instrument of terrorism on the defendant,” he said, “No.”
Agabi queried whether AAA contacted anyone Kanu may have mentioned during questioning. AAA responded that the defendant didn’t provide names. “I put it to you that there’s no other person in the whole of Nigeria who is standing terrorism trial for Biafra agitation except the defendant,” Agabi said. AAA replied that he was aware some people were charged previously but was unaware of the outcome.
He also referenced Simon Ekpa, an IPOB supporter active in Biafra agitation, noting that he had read about the ongoing efforts by the DSS to extradite Ekpa to Nigeria.
Asked if Kanu was charged with destroying property, AAA said, “Maybe not personally and virtually.” He claimed Kanu incited violence on social media but couldn’t name any individual who acted violently because of such posts.
PW1 confirmed that the defendant once referred to Nigeria as a zoo but could not recall if Kanu spoke about corruption, youth unemployment, or underdevelopment. When asked whether IPOB bore arms, he said he remembered the defendant stating IPOB “does not bear arms.”
To further challenge the terrorism claim, the defence cited mass killings across Northern Nigeria. “There have been killings in Kaduna, Zamfara, Benue, Plateau, and other parts of the North. Are those killings based on any agitation for separation?” Agabi asked. “To the best of my knowledge, no,” AAA answered.
Agabi pressed further: “Many Nigerians have been killed on their farms, in churches, in mosques, etc. Schools have been attacked, and students kidnapped or killed. Trains have been attacked, and passengers kidnapped and killed. These killings are not the product of any agitation for separation. Are they?” AAA replied, “No.”
Kanu’s case, involving charges of terrorism and treasonable felony, dates back to his initial arrest in Lagos in 2015. The prosecution faced major delays over the years, only managing to call witnesses this week. Originally, Kanu had four co-defendants, but their trial was split in 2018 after Kanu fled Nigeria. He was re-arrested in Kenya in June 2021.
What you should know
In the ongoing trial of Nnamdi Kanu, a DSS witness admitted that no weapon or terrorist material was found on the IPOB leader. The prolonged case continues to test Nigeria’s judicial handling of separatist agitation and due process.
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