The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the remand of five alleged coup plotters in DSS custody pending the continuation of their trial.
The court order to remand the five alleged coup plotters follows their arraignment on Wednesday, April 22, 2026, where the federal government formally leveled a 13-count charge against the suspects, including retired military officers and a serving police inspector, in alleged connection with an attempt to oust the administration of President Bola Tinubu.
The defendants, identified as retired Major General Mohammed Gana, retired Naval Captain Erasmus Victor, Police Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim, Zekeri Umoru, Bukar Kashim Goni, and Abdulkadir Sani, appeared before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik.
Among those listed as defendants in a 13-count treason charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/206/2026 is the erstwhile governor of Bayelsa State Timipre Sylva.
The former governor, who is said to be currently at large after escaping from the country before the alleged coup plot was leaked, was arraigned in absentia.
The charges, filed by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation, encompass serious offenses including treason, terrorism, failure to disclose security intelligence, and money laundering linked to terrorism financing.
The defendants were docked before trial by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Following their plea of innocence to the charge, the court granted an order to remand their five alleged coup plotters into the custody of the DSS.
Before the matter was adjourned, the defence lawyers, led by Mohammed Ndayako, SAN, prayed the court to order the DSS to grant them access to their clients.
They said such access would enable them to effectively prepare the defence of their clients who have been in detention since they were arrested.
Pan-Atlantic Kompass had reported that the allegations against the defendants border on treason, terrorism, failure to disclose security intelligence, and funds laundered in furtherance of acts of terrorism.
According to the FG, the defendants, sometime in September 2025, conspired among themselves to levy war against the state to overawe President Tinubu, thereby committing an offence punishable under Section 37(2) of the Criminal Code.
It was alleged that the defendants had prior knowledge of a planned treasonable act involving one Colonel Mohammed Alhassan Ma’aji and others but failed to alert the appropriate authorities.
The FG maintained that they helped Colonel Ma’aji, as evidenced by their refusal to disclose the coup plot to either the president or a peace officer.
Moreover, the defendants were accused of failing to take preventive steps, as they “did not use any reasonable endeavours to prevent the commission of the offence”.
Other allegations against them centred on terrorism-related offences under the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
They were said to have conspired with one another to commit an act of terrorism in the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Specifically, the serving police inspector, Ibrahim, and another defendant, Umoru, were accused of participating in meetings linked to terrorist activities.
The FG alleged that they acted “in a bid to further a political ideology which may seriously destabilise the constitutional structure of the Federal Republic of Nigeria”.
The defendants were further accused of providing support for terrorism.
The prosecution told the court that they knowingly and indirectly rendered support to facilitate acts of terror.
Tracing some of the transactions it said were linked to terrorism financing, the FG alleged that one of the defendants, Goni, “indirectly retained the aggregate sum of N50,000,000, which forms part of the proceeds of an unlawful act, to wit: terrorism financing”, while another defendant, Sani, allegedly retained N2 million from a similar source.
The charge also disclosed that Umoru had accepted a cash payment of N10,000,000 without going through a financial institution.
It was alleged that he also retained an additional N8.8 million suspected to be proceeds of terrorism financing.
Likewise, Inspector Ibrahim was accused of taking possession of N1 million linked to the same alleged scheme.
All financial-related counts in the charge were brought under the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
Some of the counts in the charge read: ‘That you, Major General Mohammed Ibrahim Gana (Rtd); Captain (NN) Erasmus Ochegobia Victor (Rtd); Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim (AP776373); Zekeri Umoru; Bukar Kashim Goni; Abdulkadir Sani; Timipre Sylva (still at large); and others, sometime in the year 2025, in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, knowing that Colonel Mohammed Alhassan Ma’aji (N/10668) and others intended to commit treason, did not give the information thereof with all reasonable despatch to either the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria or a peace officer and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 40(b) of the Criminal Code Cap C38 LFN 2004.’
“That you, Major General Mohammed Ibrahim Gana (Rtd); Captain (NN) Erasmus Ochegobia Victor (Rtd); Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim (AP776373); Zekeri Umoru; Bukar Kashim Goni; Abdulkadir Sani; Timipre Sylva (still at large); and others, sometime in the year 2025, in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, knowing that Colonel Mohammed Alhassan Ma’aji (N/10668) and others intended to commit treason, did not use any reasonable endeavours to prevent the commission of the offence and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 40(b) of the Criminal Code Cap C38 LFN 2004.
“That you, Major General Mohammed Ibrahim Gana (Rtd); Captain (NN) Erasmus Ochegobia Victor (Rtd); Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim (AP776373); Zekeri Umoru; Bukar Kashim Goni; Abdulkadir Sani; Timipre Sylva (still at large); and others, sometime in the year 2025 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, conspired with one another to commit an act of terrorism in the Federal Republic of Nigeria and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 26(1) of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
“That you, Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim (AP776373) and Zekeri Umoru, sometime in the year 2025 in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, in a bid to further a political ideology which may seriously destabilise the constitutional structure of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, knowingly participated in meetings connected with an act of terrorism and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Sections 2(3)(d) and 12(a) of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
“That you, Bukar Kashim Goni, in September 2025, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, indirectly retained the aggregate sum of N50,000,000.00 (fifty million naira) only in your First Bank Account Number 3021511166 from A & A Express Link Concept, which sum you reasonably ought to have known forms part of the proceeds of an unlawful act, to wit: terrorism financing, and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18(2)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022 and punishable under Section 18(3) of the same Act.
“That you, Zekeri Umoru, in September 2025, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, without going through a financial institution accepted a cash payment of the sum of N10,000,000.00 (Ten Million Naira) only from Colonel Mohammed Alhassan Ma’aji and thereby committed an offence contrary to Sections 2(1)(a) and 19(1)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, and punishable under Section 19(2)(b) of the same Act.
“That you, Zekeri Umoru, in September 2025, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, indirectly retained the aggregate sum of N8,800,000.00 (eight million, eight hundred thousand Naira) only in your Zenith Bank Plc account number 2006041878, which sum you reasonably ought to have known forms part of the proceeds of an unlawful act, to wit: terrorism financing, and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18(2)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022 and punishable under Section 18(3) of the same Act.
“That you, Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim, in September 2025, in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, directly took possession of the sum of N1,000,000.00 (one million naira) only from Colonel Mohammed Alhassan Ma’aji (N/10668), which sum you reasonably ought to have known forms part of the proceeds of an unlawful act, to wit: terrorism financing, and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 18(2)(d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022 and punishable under Section 18(3) of the same Act.”
