The Federal High Court in Abuja ordered the remand of six defendants in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) after they were arraigned on a 13-count charge bordering on alleged terrorism on Wednesday.
At the start of the hearing at approximately 1:46 pm, the Attorney General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), notified the court that the charge was ready and requested permission to read it to the defendants.
Proceedings were temporarily halted when the third defendant informed the court that his lawyer was unavailable, while counsel for the sixth defendant stated that his client only understood Arabic and Hausa, causing the court to halt the proceedings in order to get an interpreter.
When the court reconvened at around 2:18 p.m., all six defendants entered their pleas and denied the charges, pleading not guilty to all 13 counts.
Following the arraignment, the prosecution requested that the defendants be remanded in DSS custody and that the court provide an accelerated hearing of the case, a request that was not challenged by most defense counsel, while the first defendant’s lawyer indicated that he intended to file for bail.
The trial judge ordered an accelerated hearing, ordering that the defendants be held in DSS custody with access to their counsel, and adjourned the case until April 27, 2026, for trial.
Details later…
