Alleged Terror Financing: Court Remands Borno Youth Leader in Kuje Prison

By Chukwuebuka Amadi 13 October 2026, 18:21

ABUJA—A Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday ordered the remand of Samaila Ibrahim Kaigama, President of the Borno State Youths Association (BOSYA), at the Kuje Correctional Centre following his rearraignment by the Department of State Services (DSS) over alleged terrorism financing.

Presiding judge, Justice Salim Ibrahim, gave the remand order after the defendant pleaded not guilty to a newly amended seven-count charge bordering on cybercrime, money laundering, incitement to public disorder, and aiding designated terrorist factions.

According to the prosecution, Kaigama allegedly established unauthorised lines of communication and negotiated ransom payments with leadership factions of Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) in July 2026.

The security agency further claimed that the defendant actively withheld critical intelligence regarding insurgent movements from state investigators, stalling potential prosecutions.

The amended charge sheets reveal that the Federal Government accused Kaigama of acting as an intermediary to solicit, pool, and channel financial contributions from families of abducted victims directly to ISWAP cells.

The prosecution detailed that Kaigama used his social media presence across Facebook and a specialized WhatsApp platform designated as “BOSYA” to solicit ransom funds. One specific transaction detailed in court allegedly cost an affected family ₦1.8 million, with the funds routed directly into the defendant’s Guaranty Trust Bank account.

The prosecution further contends that Kaigama knowingly retained the proceeds in violation of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.

Public Incitement and Adjournment

Beyond financial crimes, the DSS brought charges of incitement to public disorder against the youth leader. It alleged that Kaigama orchestrated community-level protests engineered to disrupt public peace and maliciously target the Borno State Government alongside Senator Ali Ndume, who previously denied separate allegations linked to ransom negotiations.

The charges were instituted under the statutory frameworks of the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, the Cybercrimes Act, and the Criminal Code Act.

Following the formal entry of the not-guilty pleas, Justice Ibrahim adjourned the case to November 13, 2026, for further legal proceedings and the commencement of the trial.