A High Court of Adamawa State has sentenced three men to death for kidnapping two Catholic priests in February 2025.
The convicts, Taledo Demiel, Namomai Medan and Mikaila Yusuf, were sentenced on Thursday by Justice Christopher Mapeo after the court found them guilty of multiple offences linked to the abduction.
The offences included criminal conspiracy to commit kidnapping, conspiracy to commit armed robbery, armed robbery, harbouring kidnapped persons and negotiating to receive ransom.
The case involved the abduction of Reverend Fathers Matthew Dutsemi and Abraham Sauman.
The Department of State Services said the judgment brought to seven the number of death sentences it had secured in 2026.
On May 20, an Ekiti State High Court sentenced Ibrahim Abubakar and Abdullahi Abubakar to death by hanging for kidnapping.
On June 3, a Federal High Court in Abuja sentenced four men to death by hanging for their involvement in the June 2022 attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State.
The convicts were identified as Idris Abdulmalik Omeiza, Alqasim Idris, Jamiu Abdulmalik and Abdulkareem Idris.
On June 15, a Katsina State High Court sentenced Hauwa’u Mukhtar, described as a female arms courier, to death by hanging.
The following day, a Kogi State High Court sentenced Jibrin Halilu to death by hanging for kidnapping and murdering his neighbour in Obajana.
On June 22, a Sokoto State High Court sentenced three men, Muhammed Yusuf Sallau, Jabbi Ahlaji Yale and Kabiru Muhammed to death by hanging for terrorism and transporting arms.
On September 28, another Sokoto State High Court sentenced Ibrahim Usman, popularly known as Dan Iyali, to death by hanging for his involvement in the killing of three kidnapped persons.
The latest judgment adds to the series of capital sentences handed down by courts in cases involving kidnapping, terrorism, armed violence and other serious crimes.
However, the sentences remain subject to applicable legal procedures, including any appeals and the constitutional requirements governing the implementation of death sentences in Nigeria.
