The federal government has filed a 13-count charge in Abuja’s Federal High Court against six coup plotters, including two retired senior military officers and a serving police inspector, for allegedly plotting to wage war on Nigeria and commit terrorist activities.
The defendants—retired Major General Mohammed Gana, retired Naval Captain Erasmus Victor, Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim, Zekeri Umoru, Bukar Goni, and Abdulkadir Sani—are scheduled to be arraigned on Wednesday, April 22, before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik.
Timipre Sylva, a former minister of state for petroleum resources, is also charged but is believed to remain at large.
The charge, filed on Monday by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation and signed by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), accuses the defendants of treason, terrorism, failure to disclose security intelligence, and money laundering related to terrorism financing.
The prosecution claimed that in 2025, the defendants planned “to levy war against the state to overpower the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” which is criminal under Section 37(2) of the Criminal Code.
The Federal Government further claimed that the defendants had prior information of planned treasonous conduct involving Colonel Mohammed Alhassan Ma’aji and others but failed to notify authorities.
The defendants, “knowing that a treasonous act was intended to be committed, did not give information thereof with all reasonable dispatch to either the President… or a peace officer.”
They were also accused of neglecting to take preventive measures, as stated in the charge: “did not use any reasonable endeavors to prevent the commission of the offense.”
Beyond treason, the suspects face terrorism-related charges under the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act of 2022. Prosecutors claim they “conspired with one another to commit an act of terrorism in the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim and Zekeri Umoru were particularly charged with attending meetings related to the alleged plot “in a bid to further a political ideology which may seriously destabilize the constitutional structure of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”
The defendants were also charged with giving assistance for terrorism, stating that they “knowingly and indirectly rendered support” to facilitate terrorist acts.
Furthermore, the prosecution accused the defendants of deliberately suppressing intelligence, claiming that they “had information that would be of material assistance in preventing the commission of the act of terrorism but failed to disclose the information to the relevant agency as soon as practicable.”
On the financial front, numerous defendants were charged with managing monies related to terrorism funding in violation of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act of 2022.
Bukar Kashim Goni allegedly “indirectly retained the aggregate sum of N50,000,000, which forms part of the proceeds of an unlawful act, to wit: terrorism financing,” while Abdulkadir Sani allegedly retained N2 million from the same source.
According to the accusation, Zekeri Umoru accepted a cash payment of N10,000,000 “without going through a financial institution” and retained an extra N8.8 million suspected of being proceeds of terrorism funding.
Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim was also charged with possessing “the sum of N1,000,000, being part of the proceeds of terrorism financing.”
As hearings before the Federal High Court in Abuja begin, the federal government’s willingness to prosecute purported threats to national security will be put to the test.
In October 2025, the federal government announced the cancelation of a ceremonial parade that had been planned to commemorate Nigeria’s 65th Independence Anniversary on October 1.
Days after the announcement, claims surfaced linking the cancellation to an alleged coup attempt.
However, the defense headquarters refuted the allegations, claiming that the decision had nothing to do with any coup attempt.
Later that month, on October 31, officials reported that 16 military officers had been arrested in the first week of October as part of the alleged conspiracy, with two more still at large.
In January 2026, the defense headquarters stated that there was a plan to depose President Bola Tinubu.
The Director of Defense Information, Samaila Uba, stated that investigations conducted in accordance with military regulations revealed the involvement of several individuals in the purported coup plot.
Uba further stated that individuals involved would be brought before relevant military legal committees.
In March, family members of the arrested policemen urged President Tinubu to ensure that the defendants were tried in open court.
At a news conference in Abuja, wives and families of the jailed officers requested access to the accused, whom they referred to as alleged coup plotters.
The agitation continued in April, when families of jailed policemen protested at the National Assembly’s entrance, demanding a swift trial and better access to their relatives in custody.
