Kabiru Umar Sokoto, convicted for the 2011 Christmas Day bombing of St Theresa Catholic Church in Madalla, Niger State, has filed an appeal against his terrorism conviction and life sentence.
Sokoto’s legal team, Don Akaegbu & Company, submitted the notice of appeal at the Abuja Court of Appeal on May 13, 2026, seeking leave to file out of time. The Federal High Court in Abuja convicted him on December 20, 2013, for the attack that killed at least 37 people and injured 57.
In the motion, Sokoto said delays were caused by prolonged incarceration, repeated transfers between custodial facilities, and the deaths of two lawyers he had engaged for the appeal. He stated that his trial counsel began the appeal process but died before completing it, and a second lawyer also passed away.
An affidavit from his nephew, Lawal Suleiman, said the family could not locate Sokoto at Kirikiri Maximum Security Custodial Facility in March 2026. Suleiman said Sokoto’s health has deteriorated and that he is in need of medical attention not adequately provided at the facility.
Sokoto’s proposed appeal lists 12 grounds. He argues the trial judge erred by convicting him under Section 15(2) of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission Act, which he says relates to financial crimes, not terrorism. He also contends the prosecution failed to prove a direct link between him and any specific terrorist act in Mabira, Sokoto State, between 2007 and 2012.
He is asking the Court of Appeal to set aside the conviction and acquit him of the two-count charge filed by the federal government.
Sokoto was arrested in January 2012 at the Borno governor’s lodge in Abuja, escaped from police custody, and was re-arrested a month later in Taraba State.
