The Supreme Court of Nigeria has discharged and acquitted Nigerian Army Sergeant Akawu Bala, who had been sentenced to death by a General Court Martial. After spending 12 years in Kaduna prison, the Supreme Court, in a unanimous decision by a five-man panel, overturned the death sentence.
Sergeant Bala was accused of shooting Isa Mohammed on December 9, 2012, at the African Petroleum Station in Sabon Tasha, Kaduna, where he was stationed with an AK-47 rifle. Mohammed succumbed to his injuries the following day at Saint Gerald’s Catholic Hospital, Kaduna. Subsequently, Bala was convicted of murder under Section 106 of the Armed Forces Act 2014 and sentenced to death by hanging.
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On appeal, the Court of Appeal, Kaduna Division, in 2017, declared the trial and conviction a nullity because the charge sheet was not signed by a General Commanding Officer as required. Despite this, the Court of Appeal did not discharge Bala, leading to a further appeal to the Supreme Court.
Bala’s counsel, Reuben Okpanachi Atabo, SAN, argued that since the trial was nullified, the Court of Appeal should have discharged his client. He cited Section 193 of the Armed Forces Act 2014, which prohibits retrial after a voided trial.
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The Supreme Court, agreeing with Atabo, ruled that the trial should have resulted in Bala’s discharge. Justice Helen Morenikeji Ogunwumiju, delivering the lead judgement, invoked Section 193 of the Armed Forces Act 2014 to set Bala free, ruling out the possibility of a retrial.
The Supreme Court subsequently ordered Bala’s immediate release from Kaduna prison. The other justices on the panel included Uwani Musa Abba Aji, Chidiebere Nwaoma Uwa, Stephen Jonah Ada, and Abubakar Sadiq Umar.
Sergeant Bala defended his actions by stating that he fired at Isa Mohammed and another person when they approached him in the dark, during a period of heightened Boko Haram activity in Kaduna. He claimed he acted in self-defense after they ignored his orders to retreat.
