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Kaduna Train Attack: DSS Witness Reveals How Tukur Mamu Pocketed N50m from Ransom
A State Security Service investigator, on Tuesday, told the Federal High Court in Abuja that Tukur Mamu was offered a N50 million share by Shugaba, leader of the terrorist group, who attacked the Abuja-Kaduna bound train in 2022.
The DSS operative, who testified as 6th prosecution witness (PW-6) in the ongoing terrorism trial of Mamu, the alleged terrorists’ negotiator, told Justice Mohammed Umar while being led in evidence by the DSS lawyer, David Kaswe.
The witness, who gave his testimony behind a witness screen for security reason, said that the group also asked Mamu to teach them how to open website for their terrorist activities.
He stated this while interpreting four voice notes played in the courtroom containing the defendant’s telephone interactions with the terrorists who held the abducted train passengers hostage.
The audio recordings were extracted from Mamu’s mobile telephones during interrogation after he was arrested in Egypt and brought back to Nigeria.
“The first voice note that played was for defendant (Mamu) fixing a date for delivery of ransom.
“The second voice note that played for five minutes was the voice of Shugaba, the leader of the terrorist group.
“In the voice note, he was appreciating the defendant’s effort and ask him to remove N50 million for his personal use from a particular tranche of ransom sent to them.
“The last voice note that played, Baba Adamu, who is their spokesperson, was heard requesting the defendant to help them procure speakers and public address system for their preaching activities and the defendant responded that he was going to look into their request.
“They also requested that the defendant teach them how to open website for their activities,” the witness said.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Mamu was alleged to have convinced the terrorists to discuss ransom payments with individual families of the hostages of the train attack instead of the Chief of Defense Staff Committee set up by the Federal Government for his personal financial gain.
The defendant was said to have been nominated by the terrorists that attacked the train sometime in March 2022 where scores of passengers were held hostage.
Mamu was alleged to have collected ransoms on behalf of terror group from families of hostages, confirmed the amount and facilitated the delivery of same to them.
The PW-6, while being led in evidence on Tuesday by the prosecuting lawyer, Kaswe, told the court that after Mamu was brought back from Egypt, he submitted his Samsung tablet and two phones to DSS’ officials.
The witness said he was one of those who investigated the case.
He told the court that when the defendant was intercepted in Egypt, he put a call to his in-law, identified as Mubarak Tinja and directed him to move out all his valuables, comprising cash, cars and other items of values, from his house to a safe location, to avoid detection by security agents.
“The defendant was subsequently arrested in Egypt and returned back to Nigeria, where a team of investigators were on ground to receive him.
“A duly endorsed search warrant was duly executed in his property and office in Kaduna, during which cash, in both local and foreign currencies; vehicles and other valuables were recovered.
“In compliance with his directive to his in law, Mubarak Tinja, and the other dependants in the house, some cars and cash were moved out of the house to various locations,” he said.
He said investigators later traced and located some of the items, including about 300,000 US dollars, about seven cars, including Toyota Camry (Muscle); Peugeot 5008, Lexus, Mercedes E350 and a Hyundai car.
Vehicle documents relating to the cars were later tendered by the prosecution through the witness, which the court admitted in evidence.
The witness added that when the defendant was brought back to the country, he “handed his Samsung tablet and two of his phones to our exhibit keeper, who sent them to our forensic department for forensic analysis.
“The outcome of the forensic analysis, included the voice notes of the conversation between the defendant and the terrorists, were part of the content that were presented to the interrogation team and the items recovered from his home.
“He (the defendant) was subsequently interviewed, during which the content of his phones and other items were presented to him.
“During the interview, the defendant admitted giving instruction to Mubarak to move his variables from his house.
“He also admitted communicating with the terrorists, using his voice notes, which were extracted from his two phones and Samsung tablet.”
He added that the defendant also admitted owning a pump action gun, which was recovered from his house, which he claimed was duly licensed.
The witness, however, told the court that investigators later discovered that the licence expired in December 2021, nine months before he was arrested.
The DSS operative said about 98 per cent of the conversation on the voice notes are in Housa Language, some of which were translated to English Language by him, because they were too many.
Kaswe then applied to tender the recorded voice notes stored in compact disk plates and flash drive, which the court admitted, after Mamu’s counsel, Johnson Usman, reserved his objection until the final address.
The recorded conversations were played in the courtroom.
The witness added that in the course of investigation, two victims volunteered written statements in which they recounted their experiences.
He said one of the statements was written in English and the other in Hausa Language.
He, however, said that the victims; a male and female, were no longer available, because they expressed their unwillingness to attend court to testify because of fear and trauma.
The court admitted the statements of the victims in evidence and marked them as exhibits after it was not opposed by Usman.
The court also admitted in evidence eight statements made to investigators by Mamu and video recordings of the statements writing sessions.
Kaswe then informed the court that he would be bringing a formal application for the court to visit where the items recovered from Mamu’s house and office are kept.
Justice Umar adjourned the matter until Nov. 26 at 11am for continuation of trial.
NAN
The Federal High Court in Abuja has denied an application filed by Nnamdi Kanu, the leader of IPOB, seeking his transfer from the Sokoto Correctional Centre to a custodial facility within the Federal Capital Territory or the neighbouring Nasarawa State.
Kanu, represented by the Legal Aid Council, submitted an ex-parte application requesting an order that would direct the Federal Government or the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) to transfer him from the Sokoto facility to either the Kuje Custodial Centre in Abuja or the Keffi Custodial Centre in Nasarawa.
He requested a transfer to any custodial facility within the court’s jurisdiction, such as Suleja or Keffi, to allow him to effectively pursue his appeal.
However, Justice James Omotosho denied the request on Monday, stating that such an order could not be granted without first hearing from the Federal Government.
The judge directed Kanu to convert the ex-parte application into a motion on notice and serve all parties to allow fair hearing.
The case was subsequently fixed January 27, 2026, for the hearing of the motion.
By Henry Ukazu
Dear Destiny Friends,
One of the most unpredictable entitles in life is time. Yes, time is very unpredictable if considering its true essence.
Did you know that time heals? No matter what may have happened during one’s lifetime, the pain, no matter how great, will fizzle out with time, and life will move on. However, one’s strength and capacity for endurance will also be tested. Have you ever lost a loved one and think you will cry forever? Well, a time will come when you will completely adjust, and only miss the person when certain realities set in.
Has anyone offended you, and you think you can’t forgive? Well, if the principle of time heals and reveals, are applied, it will get to a stage, where they would automatically heal, and move on, especially in matters of the heart and relationship.
Have you also ever been betrayed? If yes, just give it little time because at the appointed time, the truth will be unraveled because time will definitely reveal itself. According to a sage, no matter how long it may take, the truth will always triumph over lie because truth is an open wound which only conscience can heal.
Why am I saying this? I have come to realize that in the journey of life, nothing lasts forever. While some people feel they have it together, they fail to understand that what they have is temporary because even their life is not guaranteed. According to Dr. Dele Momodu, an accomplished journalist, “the child of a certified pauper can become a man of means tomorrow if properly educated”.
Life has a way of humbling and elevating people, that’s why it’s always good for one to be humble before life humbles them. I once had a conversation with one of my revered mentors whom I call the sage. He shared a lesson which I won’t forget in a jiffy. We attended a burial ceremony, and I observed that the family members of the deceased were mourning bitterly. He said, “Henry, do you know why the family members are weeping profusely? I said it’s because they lost a loved one who might be the breadwinner of the family, the peacemaker or even the most resourceful person with the touch of favor and grace to get anything done.
He said, all my reasons were valid, but one thing is certain, the person won’t be replaced again because there’s no one like him and there will never be anyone like him. He went further to say, the only solace the family and friends will have is the legacy and impact he has made in the lives of those he touched.
I paused for a minute to think about what he had just said, and it was only then that it occurred to me that a vacuum had been created. While I was pondering over what he said, he dropped another bomb. He said, ‘Henry, did you see that man lying lifeless on the ground?’ I said, ‘yes sir’. He said, ‘do you know what that means?’ I said no. He said, the dead man is saying, ‘I am here today and you will be here tomorrow’. In all honesty and sincerity, those words hit me real hard. My mentor went on to say, what the dead man is actually saying is that as you leave this place today, go and make peace with everyone, but more importantly make an impact in the lives of people.
While I was still processing what my mentor said, he added, let me tell you while I invited you to attend this burial. He said, everyone who attended this funeral will move on after the burial ceremony, and what will be left of the deceased is a memory. You see, regardless of the ovation he accrued when he was alive, everything will be history. That statement really hit me hard, and that’s so true because life will always move on regardless of what happens, so it makes no sense for one to try to impress someone. Just do the best you can and then move on. The moral here is that nobody is indispensable no matter how good they are.
When we juxtapose this with the reality of life, we’ll realize that life is very simple, it’s us humans that make it difficult. Did you know that no matter how rich, valuable, resourceful, wealthy or famous one is, when the person is no longer available, they might not really be missed that much, because people will move on to the next person within a short period of time.
Let’s take a case study of a celebrity, who shares an update online. The post might trend for sometime and after a while the ovation will cease, and people will move to the next breaking news or update. The same is applicable to a tweet or post someone makes on social media. The post might gain some traction, but after a few hours or days, the story will be over. People will move on to the next post. Such is life.
The hidden truth about life is that life will move regardless of how one plans it. People will move on, companies will move on, parents, friends, siblings, and even detractors will move on to the next target. So, it makes no sense for one to try to please everyone.
According to Elbert Hubbard, “There is only one way to avoid criticism: do nothing, say nothing, and be nothing.” This literally means human beings are insatiable by nature; you can’t please them.
So, as one journeys through life, it’s always important for one to figure out what’s relevant and what’s not relevant and then decide what is the best use for your time at any point in time.
Henry Ukazu writes from New York. He works with the New York City Department of Correction as the Legal Coordinator. He’s the founder of Gloemi. He’s a Transformative Human Capacity and Mindset coach. He is also a public speaker, youth advocate, creative writer and author of Design Your Destiny Design and Unleash Your Destiny . He can be reached via info@gloemi.com
