BY UTHMAN BABA-AL- NASEER,MINNA
The Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice in Niger State, Barrister Nasiru Mua’azu, has clarified the ministry’s position regarding a viral video related to an ongoing legal case involving suspected kidnappers from Mokwa Local Government Area.
One Usman Mohammed, Chairman Vigilante group Mokwa local government area of Niger, alleged in the video that the vigilante group in Mokwa town arrested five kidnappers and handed over to men of Anti kidnapping squad of Niger State Police Command.
He alleged further that three out of the arrested kidnappers were arraigned before a Magistrate court in Minna but we're released and going about freely in Mokwa.
In a swift reaction to the viral video and the allegation raised, the Attorney General told Journalists in his office that,"the man was in my office with the issue he raised in the video.
" Right in his presence, I put a call to the Presiding Magistrate to confirm his claims only for the Magistrate to confirm that they are in Correctional Custody contrary to his allegations"
According to the Attorney General, the person in the video is not strange to him adding that he was in his office with the same complain he brought to the video clip " that I even gave him my phone number to call me if there is any further information he want to bring to my knowledge"
The Commissioner, who expressed surprise over the video’s content, stated that the individual featured in the clip is not unfamiliar to him. “Last year, he and two other individuals visited this office with the same complaint. During that meeting, I personally called the presiding Magistrate of Court 7 to confirm the status of the suspects involved. In his presence, it was confirmed that they were still in prison custody based on the magistrate’s remand order. I even gave him my number for any future updates, but instead of reaching out, he chose to go public.”
He added that during the last Ramadan, the same individual called him. “Though I wasn’t sure if the call was intentional, I called him back and introduced myself. Still, I received no direct complaint from him afterward.”
The Commissioner explained that the case initially involved two suspects—Mohammed Dan Sajo of Tunga in Mokwa and Mohammed Dengi—who were charged before Chief Magistrate Court 1 before the case was reassigned to Magistrate Court 7. “Later, a third suspect, Abubakar Usman of Kara, also in Mokwa was arrested and added to the case,” he said.
He further clarified that, despite the video’s claim that five people were arrested, only three were officially documented and charged. “If five were indeed arrested, the other two were either still under police investigation or found not culpable. The Ministry of Justice does not interfere in police investigations. We only vet the case files forwarded to us for possible prosecution.”
According to him, the police submitted a file containing only three names, upon which the ministry issued legal advice. “As it stands, Mohammed Dengi remains in custody here in Minna, and we’re working on transporting him to New Bussa to stand trial alongside Mohammed Dan Sajo.”
He refuted allegations that a court application was filed to begin trial in New Bussa without all suspects present. “That’s false. No counsel would proceed knowing that one of the accused is still in Minna.”
Addressing the release of a suspect during a prison visit by the Chief Judge, he stated, “We cannot fault the Honourable Chief Judge’s decision. Based on the documents available to her at the time, there was no formal charge or evidence against the individual who was released.”
The Commissioner concluded by reaffirming the ministry’s position: “We don’t arrest or investigate. We only act on the files presented to us. In this case, only three individuals were arraigned based on the information received. The identity of the person released by the Chief Judge remains uncertain due to discrepancies in documentation and names.”
In the viral video, the Chairman of the vigilante group member of Mokwa community alleged that five suspects involved in kidnapping and other crimes had been arrested. However, this appears to be misinformation, as only three suspects were officially documented and charged by the authorities.
