Man sentenced to death for role in Nyanya bomb blasts

The Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced 37‑year‑old Zakaria Garba to death by hanging for his involvement in the 2014 Nyanya Motor Park bomb attack, which killed at least 70 people and injured many others.

Justice James Omotosho delivered the sentence during the mass trial of terrorism suspects in the Federal Capital Territory.

Garba was found guilty after pleading guilty to five terrorism‑related charges brought by the Office of the Attorney‑General of the Federation and the Minister of Justice.

The Nyanya bomb blasts, which took place on the outskirts of Abuja in April 2014, remain one of the deadliest terrorist attacks in the nation’s capital.

In judgment FHC/KNJ/CR/985/2026, Justice Omotosho imposed different penalties for each count. Garba received 35 years’ imprisonment for counts one and two, life imprisonment for count three, and death by hanging for counts four and five.

Omotosho noted that Garba’s guilty plea and the evidence presented proved his participation in the attack, which caused significant loss of life and destruction.

The conviction is part of a wider effort by authorities to prosecute individuals linked to terrorism‑related offences and to provide closure for victims of attacks that have plagued the country for years.