Court sentences soldier to death by hanging for killing girlfriend

A General Court Martial (GCM) sitting at the Headquarters of 82 Division, Nigerian Army, Enugu, has sentenced a soldier, Pte Adamu Mohammed, to death by hanging for killing his girlfriend.

The acting Deputy Director 82 Division Army Public Relations, Lt.-Col. Jonah Unuakhalu, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday, April 29, 2025.

Unuakhalu said the sentence was handed down after due consideration for the offence of murder.

The GCM, composed of 11 members, was inaugurated by the General Officer Commanding (GOC), 82 Division, Nigerian Army, Maj.-Gen. Oluyemi Olatoye, on February 18, 2025.

The President of the GCM, Brig.-Gen. Sadisu Buhari, while delivering the judgement on Mohammed’s murder case, said he was found guilty of the offence of the murder of his girlfriend.

Buhari said it is an offence punishable under Section 106 (a) of the Armed Forces Act, Cap A20 LFN 2004.

The judgement, which was unanimous, the GCM President explained, was arrived at after careful review of facts, career and service record of the soldier, and the compassionate plea for mitigation presented by the soldier and his counsel.

However, Buhari noted that in the interest of societal decorum and justice for the deceased, the law had to be applied to its fullest.

Given this, the GCM stated that the accused soldier “is hereby sentenced to death by hanging for the charge of murder.”

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Buhari also sentenced another soldier, Pte Abubakar Yusuf, to 10 years imprisonment for robbery at a mall in Enugu.

The court president held that the panel found Yusuf guilty of robbery, punishable under Section 107(1)(b) of the Armed Forces Act, Cap A20 LFN 2004.

He added: “Although the court attentively considered the plea in mitigation presented by the accused and his counsel for leniency, the law was applied to uphold societal decorum and protect the reputation of the army.

“The court, hereby, sentences the accused soldier, 23NA/85/12116 Pte Abubakar Yusuf, to 10 years imprisonment.”

The Star