COURT FIXES MAY 8 FOR JUDGMENT IN TERRORISM CASE AGAINST WOMAN ACCUSED OF SUPPLYING AMMUNITION TO BANDITS

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By Aishat Momoh. O.

Justice Yilwa Hauwa Joseph of the Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed May 8 for judgment in terrorism charges filed by the Department of State Services (DSS) against Halima Haliru Umar, a woman accused of supplying ammunition to bandits.

The judge set the date on Wednesday after reviewing the facts of the case and the accused person’s admission of guilt on some of the charges.

During the proceedings, a DSS operative and the first prosecution witness, Fahad Tahir, told the court that the Katsina-based housewife was arrested on July 6, 2025, with 302 rounds of live AK-47 ammunition and ₦57,100 cash while allegedly transporting them to a group of bandits in Plateau State.

Tahir explained that the suspect was apprehended by DSS operatives and subsequently made a statement in Hausa at the agency’s Plateau Command office, admitting that one Alhaji Sani had sent her to Zaria in Kaduna State to procure the ammunition from another individual.

According to the witness, the accused was later transferred on August 11, 2025, to the DSS national headquarters in Abuja, where a second round of questioning took place.

He told the court that, in the presence of a lawyer from the Legal Aid Council, the defendant made another statement in Hausa, again admitting that she was arrested with the ammunition and the cash.

Led in evidence by DSS counsel, Callistus Samson Ezeh, the witness tendered the 302 live rounds of ammunition, the ₦57,100 cash and the defendant’s statements, which were admitted as exhibits after the defence raised no objection.

Counsel to the defendant, Hamza Dantani, did not oppose the admission of the exhibits.

In open court, the accused person was shown the recovered ammunition and the cash, which she acknowledged as items found in her possession at the time of her arrest.

Following the review of the facts, Justice Joseph fixed May 8 for judgment on counts three and four, to which the defendant admitted guilt, while the trial will continue on counts one and two, where she pleaded not guilty.

According to the charge, Umar, a resident of Unguwan Boka in Faskari Local Government Area of Katsina State, is accused of concealing information about suspected gunrunners and providing material support for terrorism, including the transportation of 302 rounds of AK-47 ammunition.

The offences are said to contravene provisions of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022 and the **Firearms Act 2004.