By WANDOO SOMBO and TAIYE AGBAJE

The Federal Government has secured 386 convictions out of 508 cases against terrorists in a mass trial.

The Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice Mr Lateef Fagbemi, SAN who confirmed this to newsmen on Friday said that out of a total of 508 defendants brought to court, two were acquitted while eight were discharged.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the trial began on Tuesday in the Federal High Court, Abuja.

The convicts were sentenced to various jail terms ranging from eight years to life imprisonment depending on the gravity of the charges against them.

Fagbemi further explained that the batch of 112 suspects whose cases could not be attended to would be arraigned along with others in the next phase of the mass trial from June 15 to 18.

He said that the mass trial and the imprisonment of the 386 terrorists would serve as a signal to criminals that Nigeria had no tolerance for heinous crimes.

The minister commended the 10 judges of the court for sacrificing their Easter holiday to sit as special courts to handle the cases.

He also said that international bodies including Amnesty International as well as the Nigerian Bar Association, (NBA), the National Human Rights Commission and some civil society organisations witnessed the proceedings to ensure that due process and transparency was followed.

NAN reports that the trials are part of Phase nine in a series of mass prosecutions intended to tackle insecurity and bring terrorism suspects to justice after prolonged detention.

The Federal Government maintained that prosecuting such cases was essential to weakening insurgent operations and restoring stability in the country. (NAN)

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