A Special Court Martial of the Nigerian Army sitting in Maiduguri, Borno State, has sentenced three soldiers to life imprisonment and another to 15 years over their involvement in an illegal arms racket that funnelled weapons to criminals and militias.
The trial, convened on September 18, 2025, by Acting General Officer Commanding 7 Division and Commander, Sector 1 Operation HADIN KAI (OPHK), Brigadier General Ugochukwu Unachukwu, was held at the Headquarters Theatre Command Officers’ Mess.
Presiding judge Brigadier General Mohammed Abdullahi ruled that the soldiers were guilty of theft, unlawful dealings in ammunition, and aiding the enemy—offences under the Armed Forces Act, CAP A20 LFN 2004.
The convicted soldiers include:
- Sergeant Raphael Ameh – sentenced to life imprisonment for diverting ammunition from the 7 Division Garrison armoury in collaboration with late Lance Corporal Ogbogo Isaac and operatives of the Police Mobile Force (PMF). Court records linked him to more than 100 suspicious transactions between July 2022 and June 2024, with weapons concealed in bags of beans and trafficked to Enugu and Ebonyi States.
- Sergeant Ejiga Musa – armourer with 195 Battalion, also sentenced to life imprisonment for conspiring with Lance Corporal Patrick Ocheje and Inspector Francis Manasseh of 30 PMF to sell an AK-47 rifle and large caches of ammunition. He was caught attempting to sell arms to another PMF operative.
- Lance Corporal Patrick Ocheje – equally handed life imprisonment for stealing ammunition at Forward Operating Base Molai, selling to militias during communal clashes, and stealing a colleague’s rifle.
- Corporal Omitoye Rufus – sentenced to 15 years imprisonment for selling 40 rounds of 7.62mm ammunition to Inspector Enoch Nwokolobia.
In his remarks, Brig. Gen. Abdullahi described the offences as “a grave betrayal of trust and discipline, a direct threat to national security, and an act of aiding the enemy.” He stressed that the Army would not condone such criminality, warning that misconduct undermines morale and tarnishes the institution’s image.
“The Nigerian Army remains committed to accountability, professionalism and justice. Misconduct will be met with stiff sanctions, while gallantry and professionalism will be duly rewarded,” he said.
The Army reaffirmed its zero-tolerance stance on arms diversion and vowed that any soldier who compromises their oath of service would face the full weight of the law.
