Court grants DSS request to fast-track trial of UN House bombing suspect, Al Barnawi, 4 others

A Federal High Court in Abuja has approved an application by the Department of State Services (DSS) to fast-track the trial of Khalid Al-Barnawi, the suspected mastermind of the August 26, 2011 bombing of the United Nations building in Abuja, alongside four other defendants.

Al-Barnawi, a notorious terror suspect, was arrested by the DSS in April 2016 in Lokoja, Kogi State, five years after the devastating attack.

The bombing, which was the first of its kind on an international organization in Nigeria, left over 20 people dead and injured more than 70 others, drawing global condemnation at the time.

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On Friday, the DSS, through its counsel, Alex Iziyon SAN, had moved the application for accelerated hearing on the ground that the Service is prepared to ensure that the case is determined in a timely manner.

In the application, which was not opposed by the respective defendants’ counsel, parties will be allowed to watch video recordings presented by the DSS to prove that the extrajudicial statements given by the defendants were done voluntarily as against the claim of some of the defendants.

The video clips will be played in the presence of the court registrar and parties will take notes after which they will return to the court on the 23rd and 24th October for continuation of trial within trial.

Al-Barnawi’s trial had begun shortly after his arrest in 2016 in Lokoja. However, several legal and administrative issues had stalled the trial.

Also known as Kafuri/Naziru/Alhaji Yahaya/Mallam Dauda/Alhaji Tanimu, he is believed to be a founding member of Jama’at Ahl as-Sunnah lid Da’wah Wa’l-Jihad, the Boko Haram Islamist terror group, before he became the leader (Amir) of the breakaway faction, Jama’at Ansarul Muslimim Fi Biladi Sudan, JAMBS.