Katsina State Government has justified its reason for initiating steps to secure the release of 70 persons suspected to have been involved in banditry-related offences.

Speaking in an interview with DCL Hausa, the state Commissioner for Internal Security and Home Affairs, Dr. Nasir Muazu, said the release of the suspects was aimed at consolidating a peace deal entered into between communities affected by insecurity and repentant bandits.

Muazu said the peace deal, which was entered into by at least 15 Local Government Areas, had seen repentant bandits release about 1,000 persons who were abducted during various bandits’ operations.

He said the release of the 70 suspects was similar to what occurs during war periods, where fighting groups exchange prisoners.

Recall that an official letter had surfaced last week indicating that the state government initiated steps to secure the release of the suspected bandits who were facing criminal trials.

First reported by Sahara Reporters, the letter, dated January 2, 2026, and classified as “SECRET,” was issued by the state Ministry of Justice and addressed to the Chief Judge of the state.

The letter indicated that the ministry requested the intervention of the Administration of Criminal Justice Monitoring Committee (ACJMC) to facilitate the release of the detained suspects.

Signed by the Director of Public Prosecutions, Abdur-Rahman Umar, Esq., the letter disclosed that a list containing the names of 48 individuals accused of various banditry-related offences had been forwarded to the Ministry of Justice by the Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs.

According to the letter, the proposed release of the suspects is aimed at “facilitating their release from detention, as one of the conditions precedent for the continuance of the peace accord deal signed between the frontline local governments and the bandits.”

The Ministry of Justice further revealed that while a handful of the suspects have been arraigned before the Federal High Court, most remain in detention awaiting trial at various Magistrate Courts across the state.

The letter also disclosed that a separate list of about 22 inmates currently facing trial before different High Courts in the state was submitted, with the aim of having them released under the same peace arrangement.

The Ministry urged the Chief Judge to take “necessary action,” adding that the matter falls within the statutory powers of the Criminal Justice Monitoring Committee under Section 371(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law of Katsina State, 2021.

But the letter had sparked outrage and concern from Nigerians, with some cautioning against releasing suspects accused of serious crimes such as banditry, as doing so could undermine the rule of law, deny victims justice, and embolden criminal groups.

The commissioner said the repentant bandits had released about 1,000 persons during the peace deal, and that the release of the 70 detained persons was like a “prisoner exchange”.

“For example, in Safana Local Government Area, they (repentant bandits) released 36 persons; in Kurfi, they released 42 persons; in Sabuwa, they released 310 persons; in Faskari, they released 36 persons; in Danmusa, they released 60 persons.

“In Malumfashi, they released 36 persons; in Musawa, they released 28 persons; in Matazu, they released 33 persons. In Dutsinma, they released 62 persons; in Jibia, they released 31 persons; in Bakori, they released 125 persons.”

The commissioner added that, “World over, everyone knows that after a war is fought, there are usually prisoner exchanges. If you take Nigeria, for example, during the civil war, many prisoners were set free and exchanged between the Nigerian side and the Biafran side.

“If you look at the issue of Boko Haram, prisoners were also released after an agreement was reached. Even the Chibok girls that were released also saw some Boko Haram members who were in prison set free too.

“Both warring groups have prisoners they set free for the other. So, it is not an issue of whether an offence had been committed or not, so long as there is peace. The issue is that prisoner exchange is not a new thing in the history of war and peace.”

He added that what the Ministry of Justice and the High Court did did not violate existing laws in the country, and that anyone not satisfied can always go to the courts to seek redress.

(The Guardian)

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