Umar Bashir, a businessman operating in Maiduguri, has received a 20-year prison sentence with no possibility of a fine following a conviction for financing terrorism. The court established that Bashir, who worked as a perfume dealer and POS operator, utilized his United Bank of Africa account to facilitate financial transactions for Boko Haram operatives.
During the proceedings, Bashir confessed to receiving 5 million Naira from a Boko Haram member identified as Ibrahim Modu. He then transferred the funds into the terrorist’s Access Bank account. The convict admitted that the transaction, which occurred in Maiduguri in 2025, earned him a commission of 20,000 Naira. Following his guilty plea during his Monday arraignment, Justice Binta Fatimah Nyako handed down the 20-year sentence. The judge refused requests for leniency, confirming that the term began upon his arrest in 2025 and emphasizing the necessity of upholding the law.
