In Kwara, six herders were sentenced to life in prison for kidnapping.

In Kwara, six herders were sentenced to life in prison for kidnapping.

FastNews reports that six Fulani herdsmen were sentenced to life in prison for kidnapping by a Kwara State High Court in Ilorin on Friday.

The men were found guilty and convicted of conspiracy, kidnapping, and illegal possession of firearms by Justice Hannah Ajayi.

Tambaya Abubakar, Babuga Umaru, Shehu Umaru, Mojumba Bello, Abubakar Juli, and Mamma Lawali were among those convicted after a five-year trial before the Court.

The six defendants were charged with conspiracy, kidnapping, and firearms possession by the prosecution.

In 2017, the convicts were accused of conspiring and kidnapping one Usman Mohammed in Osi, Ekiti Local Government Area, Kwara State, armed with two single barrel guns.

The charge further revealed that the convicts took Mohammed into the bush where they demanded a ransom and were paid N400,000 by the victim’s family.

The convicts who pleaded not guilty to the charges during the course of the trial told the court through their separate counsel that they were Fulanis who reared cattle and were always busy on their various farms attending to their animals.

Justice Ajayi in her judgment found the six accused persons guilty and sentenced them to life imprisonment.

The Kwara State Director of Public Prosecution, Barr Abdulmumini Jimoh (SAN), who prosecuted the matter, expressed satisfaction with the verdict adding that it would serve as a deterrent to others.