Monday, September 15, 2025 - Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Dele Alake, yesterday, described the 15-year jail term handed to Ansaru commander, Mahmud Usman, as a landmark victory in the country’s ongoing war against illegal mining.
On Thursday, Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court,
Abuja, convicted Usman and sentenced him to prison while also ordering that he
face trial on 31 other terrorism-related charges.
Commending the judiciary for supporting efforts of the
ministry to crush illegal mining, Alake said the verdict has finally
established that bandits engage in illegal mining to fund their operations.
“It is gratifying for me that the judiciary is aligned with
the ministry’s objective of zero tolerance for illegal mining. Further
tightening of the noose around illegalities in mining continues as more drastic
measures will be announced shortly,” he said.
Alake said the ministry would monitor proceedings of the
remaining 31 cases of terrorism against the convict, noting that the
regulators have a lot to learn from these cases to improve their capacity to
counter illegal mining.
In a statement by his Special Assistant (Media), Segun
Tomori, the minister also lauded the Directorate of State Services (DSS) for
the yeoman’s job of monitoring, detecting, and arresting terrorists to face the
wrath of the law.
Translated as the Vanguard for the Protection of Muslims in
Black Africa, the Ansaru group is facing court charges for attacking the
Nigerian Army Wawa Cantonment and raiding Kuje Prisons, Abuja, in 2022, among
other terrorist activities.
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