Former legal counsel and consultant to Nnamdi Kanu, Aloy Ejimakor, has announced that the IPOB leader will challenge the life imprisonment sentence handed down by the Federal High Court in Abuja.
Diaspora Digital Media reported that Justice James Omotosho on Thursday sentenced Kanu to life imprisonment on counts one, two, four, five and six—offences which ordinarily carry the death penalty.
The judge also imposed 20 years imprisonment on count three and five years on count seven, both without the option of a fine. All sentences are to run concurrently.
Speaking after the judgment, Ejimakor confirmed that the legal team had already resolved to file an appeal.
“We are heading to appeal,” he told reporters outside the courtroom.
The judge delivered the ruling after an hour-long session in which Kanu was convicted on all seven terrorism charges brought against him by the Department of State Services (DSS) on behalf of the Federal Government.
Justice Omotosho said the defendant’s actions—including threats of violence, killings, and repeated declarations of sit-at-home orders across the South-East—constituted acts of terrorism under Nigerian law.
Kanu’s life imprisonment sentence was issued after pleas for the court to temper justice with mercy, instead of applying the death penalty prescribed for several of the counts.
The judgment marks one of the most consequential rulings in Kanu’s protracted legal battle, setting the stage for a fresh round of litigation as his legal team prepares to take the case to the Court of Appeal.
