Papiri Catholic School Attack: 5 Convicts Jailed 25 Years for Terrorism

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has jailed five persons for twenty-five years each for their roles in the attack and abduction of pupils and teachers at Saint Joseph Catholic School, Papiri, Niger State.

While about 50 of the children managed to escape in the chaos that greeted the attack, the gunmen marched over 250 of the students for days into the Kainji Lake Reserve Forest.

Justice BINTA NYAKO delivered the judgment in what could pass as the fastest terrorism trial in Nigerian history, which comes less than a month after the suspects were arrested by the Department of State Services on May 31, 2026.

The convicts, including two from Niger Republic, were identified as YUSUF MOHAMNED (Aka Bature), GONI IBRAHIM BINDI (Aka Goni Mutuwa), SANI TUKUR (Aka Danladi), MUBARAK IBRAHIN and MUSA ALHAJI ADAMU (Aka Gado Banufe).

They were arrested by DSS at different locations about two weeks ago, following the Papiri school attack and abduction on November 21, 2025, and they all pleaded to the four terrorism-related charges pressed against them.

The charges bordered on support for commission of act of terrorism, breaching both Section 16 of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, as well as the Firearms Act.

In one of the arrests, DSS operatives recovered 15 AK-47 rifles and 1,434 rounds of live ammunition tucked in sacks in a Volkswagen Golf car.

The recovered arms and ammunition were tendered in court. The court ordered the forfeiture of the Golf car to the Nigerian government.