A General Court Martial (GCM) sitting at the 82 Division Headquarters of the Nigerian Army in Enugu has sentenced Private Adamu Mohammed to death by hanging for the murder of his girlfriend.
The ruling was delivered on Tuesday following the conclusion of the trial presided over by Brigadier General Sadisu Buhari, President of the GCM. The 11-member panel had been inaugurated on 18 February 2025 by the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 82 Division, Major General Oluyemi Olatoye.
In a statement issued by the Acting Deputy Director of Army Public Relations, Lieutenant Colonel Jonah Unuakhalu, the court found Mohammed guilty of the charge of murder under Section 106(a) of the Armed Forces Act, Cap A20, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
Brig. Gen. Buhari stated that the judgment, reached unanimously, considered the evidence, the accused’s service record, and a plea for leniency before concluding that justice must be served to uphold societal order and protect the dignity of the military.
“In the interest of societal decorum and justice for the deceased, the law had to be applied to its fullest,” Buhari declared.
In a separate case, the court sentenced another soldier, Private Abubakar Yusuf, to 10 years imprisonment for robbery at a shopping mall in Enugu. He was convicted under Section 107(1)(b) of the Armed Forces Act.
Although the panel noted Yusuf’s plea for mitigation, it could not reach a unanimous decision to impose the maximum punishment as outlined in Section 107(2) of the Act. Therefore, the court relied on Section 140(3) to determine the sentence.
Both verdicts remain subject to confirmation by the appropriate confirming authority.
The Nigerian Army reiterated its commitment to upholding discipline and ethical conduct, stressing that while individual misconduct occurs, the institution takes swift and decisive action to maintain integrity and public trust.
