The federal government on Thursday arraigned five men before the Federal High Court in Abuja over an alleged plot to supply 15 AK-103 rifles and 1,434 rounds of live ammunition to a suspected Boko Haram member operating in Niger State.
The defendants are Yusuf Muhammad (also known as Bature), Goni Ibrahim Bindi (also known as Goni Mutuwa), Sani Tukur (also known as Danladi), Mubarak Ibrahim, and Musa Alhaji Adamu (also known as Gado Banufe).
They face four charges of terrorism, unlawful possession of firearms, and providing support to a terrorist organisation.
According to the charges, the men allegedly conspired between 23 and 24 April 2026 to help a terrorist by moving the weapons from the Diffa Region of the Republic of Niger into Nigeria.
Diffa borders north-eastern Nigeria and has long been part of the Lake Chad Basin insurgency corridor where Boko Haram and its splinter groups operate across porous borders between Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon.
The weapons were intended for one Malam Ahmad, described as a Boko Haram member based in Borgu Local Government Area of Niger State.
Prosecutors alleged that the defendants facilitated the movement of the weapons and ammunition on behalf of the suspected terrorist, thereby providing material support for acts of terrorism.
One count specifically accuses Goni Ibrahim Bindi, Sani Tukur, and Musa Alhaji Adamu of unlawful possession of the firearms and ammunition.
The charge stated that the three men were arrested on 24 April at the Kwangila area along the Kano-Kaduna Expressway in Zaria, Kaduna State, while allegedly transporting the weapons.
Prosecutors alleged that the 15 AK-103 rifles and 1,434 rounds of ammunition were concealed inside sacks of dried fish and loaded into a blue Volkswagen Golf 3 with Republic of Niger registration number BT 9990 DA.
Security experts say traffickers across the Sahel often use commercial goods and agricultural produce as cover for moving illicit weapons along informal border routes.
The federal government also levelled a separate allegation against the first defendant, Yusuf Muhammad.
It alleged that between February 2025 and April, he possessed information that could have helped security agencies locate and prosecute Malam Ahmad, who was said to be hiding in the Gandu Forest in Borgu Local Government Area.
Prosecutors claimed he didn't disclose that information to law enforcement, an act said to be contrary to Section 16 of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
The indictment was signed by the Director of Public Prosecutions of the Federation (DPPF), Rotimi Oyedepo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), who led the prosecution alongside M. A. Oladunjoye on behalf of the Attorney General of the Federation.
The defendants were represented by their lawyer, Akilahyel Shetima.
In the proof of evidence filed before the court, the prosecution listed the defendants' confessional statements, attestation forms, investigators' reports, and other documentary evidence it plans to use during trial.
It also indicated that investigating officers and other witnesses would be called to testify.
A case summary accompanying the charge stated that the defendants were arrested following intelligence reports of an alleged plan to move weapons from Niger Republic to a suspected terrorist enclave in Borgu.
According to investigators, the second and third defendants allegedly received the weapons consignment in the Diffa Region before they were intercepted while transporting it towards Nigeria.
The prosecution further alleged that the first and fourth defendants had travelled from Borgu to Zaria on the instructions of Malam Ahmad to receive the consignment from the couriers and facilitate its delivery to the suspected terrorist in a forest within Borgu.
Following their arraignment, the court adjourned the matter for trial while it considers issues relating to their continued detention and the bail applications filed on their behalf.
Under Nigerian law, the charges remain allegations, and the defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty by the court.