The Plateau State High Court in Jos has ordered that four suspects facing trial for the April 2026 killings in Angwa Rukuba, Jos North Local Government Area, should remain in the custody of the Department of State Services (DSS) until investigations are complete.
The order was made Thursday at the resumed hearing in the bench trial before Justice Danladi Longden.
During the hearings, the prosecution, led by the State Attorney General, Philemon Audu Daffi, told the court that a Case Management Conference (CMC) had been filed along with the charge. The court was asked to set a date for the conference and also to extend the remand of the defendants in DSS custody so that investigators could complete their job.
Daffi told the court that additional time was needed especially because one of the primary suspects linked to the investigation is still on the run.
Counsel to the accused, Mustapha Shabbat Ibrahim (SAN), did not object to the request for a CMC date but strongly opposed the continuing custody of his clients by the DSS. During his detention, he expressed worry over access to the defendants.
The Attorney General rejected the assertion, saying in his 37 years of legal profession he had not encountered a circumstance where the DSS had denied lawyers access to their clients.
Justice Longden then adjourned the hearing until May 8, 2026 for the Case Management Conference and ordered that the four defendants be kept in custody of the DSS.
The defendants were arrested in connection with the Angwa Rukuba attacks and were arraigned last week by the Plateau State Government.
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Those indicted include Isa Umar Ibrahim, Auwalu Abubakar (alias Auwalu Dogo) and Musa Abubakar Ibrahim (alias Yaroro) facing allegations of criminal conspiracy and terrorism related acts. Another accused, Adamu Isa Alhassan is facing more charges of culpable homicide, illegal possession of firearms and illicit trade in arms and ammunition.
The offences are punished under sections 269 and 270 of the Plateau State Penal Code Law, 2017, the prosecution said. The charges include claims that the defendants organized, funded and enabled the attacks that led to the killing of over 30 persons in Angwa Rukuba.
Alhassan is also suspected to have been involved in other attacks on communities in the Riyom and Jos South Local Government Areas from 2015 to early 2016.
The culprits were captured between April 3 and April 10, 2026, and several more connected to the acts remain at large.
At least 30 individuals, including women and children, were killed in the attacks that took place over areas of Bokkos and Bassa Local Government Areas on March 28, 2025, generating international outrage.
Earlier in April, Bola Ahmed Tinubu visited Jos to see victims and promise them justice in reaction to the violence. He also established a N2 billion relief fund for victims of the attacks during a meeting with Plateau State authorities in Abuja.
While there have been requests for public activities to be stopped following the killings, Caleb Mutfwang said the state would not be intimidated by fear, saying that life must go on as attempts to stop the violence are stepped up.
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