A General Court Martial sitting at Maxwell Khobe Cantonment, Jos, has sentenced Private Lukman Musa of the Nigerian Army’s 3 Division to death by hanging for the murder of a tricycle (Keke) rider, Abdulrahman Isa, in Bauchi State.
The verdict, delivered on Thursday, September 18, 2025, by the court’s president, Brigadier General Liafis Bello, found Musa guilty of murder, culpable homicide, and unlawful possession of ammunition.
Court proceedings revealed that Musa, in connivance with an accomplice identified as Oba, lured Isa to his residence under the pretense of helping him move belongings. Musa then struck Isa on the head with a wooden object before strangling him to death. In an attempt to cover up the crime, the soldier stuffed the victim’s body into a sack and dumped it between Shira and Yala villages. Isa’s tricycle was later sold.
Investigators further discovered that Musa was unlawfully in possession of 34 rounds of 7.62mm special ammunition.
In his ruling, Brig. Gen. Bello described Musa’s actions as “barbaric and heartless,” stressing that the soldier betrayed his sacred duty to protect lives.
“You mercilessly metamorphosed from a defender of citizens to a killer. Your action is an embarrassment and disgrace to the Nigerian Army,” Bello declared.
Musa was convicted under Section 220 of the Penal Code and sentenced to death by hanging in line with Section 221.
