In seven years, the federal government said it successfully prosecuted 1,500 terrorism cases and obtained 397 convictions.
During a ministerial scorecard of the Justice Sector from 2015 to date, the attorney general of the Federation (AGF) and minister of justice, Abubakar Malami, stated that a total of 3000 cases have been profiled and convictions have been secured in seven years.
“A total of 3,000 terrorism cases have been profiled to date,” Malami said, “out of which over 1500 cases have been prosecuted, with 397 convictions realized.”
He also said a total of 7,000 cases involving various offences including kidnapping, armed robbery, vandalism, and cybercrime, amongst others, were “successfully prosecuted”.
According to the AGF, the ministry is coordinating the next phase of terrorism-related trials with the Federal High Court, the Legal Aid Council, and the Defense Headquarters.
He also confirmed the recent release of 30 awaiting trial persons (ATPs) from the Keffi Correctional Centre as well as the release of 101 suspected terrorists from the Kirikiri Maximum Correctional Centre “who have spent over 10 years in custody without trial before the Federal High Court in Lagos”.
During his scorecard presentation, the AGF also stated that the federal government recovered £6.3 million, €5.4 million, and $390,000 of its assets that had been stolen by corrupt government officials and taken to foreign countries.
He stated that a portion of the recovered funds were used to rebuild the Abuja-Kano Expressway, the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, and the Second Niger Bridge in the South-East.
“In accordance with presidential mandates and foreign judicial processes, the Ministry has recovered total sums of £6,324,627.66, €5,494,743.71 and $390,000,000 from various jurisdictions.
“Some of the recovered funds are being used to finance critical infrastructure such as the Abuja-Kano Expressway, the Second Niger Bridge, and the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway,” he said.
The minister also stated that the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari earned N1.8 billion locally from the sale of forfeited assets from 2015 to date.
“So far, the Ministry has generated a total of N1,823,788,146.86 (One Billion, Eight Hundred and Twenty-Three Million, Seven Hundred and Eighty-Eight Thousand, One Hundred and Forty-Six Thousand naira, Eighty-Six kobo) from forfeited properties,” Malami said.
