Federal High Court in Abuja issues bench warrant for five terror suspects linked to Bello Turji after they failed to appear for trial

The Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has issued a bench warrant for the arrest of five suspects linked to the notorious terrorist kingpin Bello Turji.

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Justice Emeka Nwite granted the order on Wednesday following an oral application by counsel for the Federal Government, David Kaswe, after the defendants failed to appear for trial.

The suspects are Musa Kamarawa, Abubakar Hashimu, also known as Doctor, Samuel Chinedu, Lucky Chukwuma, and Bashir Abdullahi.

Their lawyer, A.M. Lukman, confirmed that he had contacted Kamarawa, who had promised to attend, but none of the suspects were present in court.

Justice Nwite adjourned the matter until 24 February 2026 for the continuation of the trial.

The development follows a Federal Government application in December 2025 to reopen terrorism charges against the five individuals.

The charges were originally filed in December 2024 by M.B. Abubakar, Director of the Department of Public Prosecutions, accusing the suspects of providing material support to terrorist groups led by Turji, Kachalla Halilu, and others.

Allegations include supplying illicit drugs, food, military and police uniforms, construction materials, and firearms to terrorist camps in Zamfara, Sokoto, and Kaduna States.

In one case, Kamarawa, Turji, and co-defendants allegedly procured a gun truck from Libya in 2021 for terrorist use at a cost of N28.5 million.

The suspects previously denied involvement when arraigned in December 2024.

Justice Nwite had ordered their remand at Kuje Correctional Centre and had rejected a bail request in March 2025.

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The court had initially struck out the charges in July 2025 due to a lack of diligent prosecution, but the Federal Government successfully applied to reinstate the case in December 2025.