Offa robbery: Kwara govt drops 16 charges against Saraki, Ahmed, retains four – The Witness Nigeria

The Kwara State government has asked the state high court in Ilorin to reduce the 20-count criminal charge against Bukola Saraki, former senate president and Abdulfatah Ahmed, a former governor of the state to four counts over the 2018 Offa robbery.

In an amended charge dated November 6, 2026, the prosecution dropped allegations bordering on armed robbery, the killing of police officers and illegal possession of firearms.

The four remaining counts concern conspiracy to belong to a gang of thieves, membership of a gang of thieves and the alleged concealment of a Lexus RX Jeep bearing the inscription ‘SARAKI’ as its number plate.

The case also involves Yusuf Abdulwahab, Ahmed’s former Chief of Staff, and Alabi Olalekan, another former aide.

Five individuals previously convicted over the Offa robbery namely Ayoade Akinnibosun, Ibikunle Ogunleye, Adeola Abraham, Salawu Azeez and Niyi Ogundiran, were also named in parts of the amended charge.

The prosecution said the decision to amend the charges followed an official briefing on the case. It argued that the evidence attached to the original charge was sufficient to sustain the revised allegations.

It also told the court that the defendants had yet to enter their pleas and that the trial had not commenced, insisting that the amendment would not prejudice them.

Reacting, Saraki’s media office described the withdrawal of 18 counts as evidence that the original allegations against the former Senate president and Ahmed were unfounded.

In a statement signed by Yusuph Olaniyonu, the media office accused the Kwara government of abusing the judicial process and using the case to politically persecute the two former governors.

It also alleged that the government spent close to N100 million on newspaper advertisements publicising the original allegations.

Saraki, however, vowed to challenge the four remaining charges, describing them as another attempt to tarnish his reputation.

The Offa robbery occurred on April 5, 2018, when gunmen attacked several banks and a police station in the town, killing 33 people, including 12 police officers and a pregnant woman.

Following the incident, police invited Saraki for questioning after the alleged gang leader, Akinnibosun, linked members of the gang to the former Senate president.

Akinnibosun later told journalists that his group had worked for Saraki but maintained that the former governor was unaware of their involvement in the robbery.

In March 2019, he also alleged that Abba Kyari, then a Deputy Commissioner of Police, pressured suspects to implicate Saraki. Saraki has consistently denied any connection to the robbery.

In September 2024, a Kwara State High Court convicted five suspects over the attack. The Court of Appeal upheld their convictions and sentences in January.

Saraki governed Kwara from 2003 to 2011 and served as Senate President from 2015 to 2019. Ahmed succeeded him as governor and served until 2019.

The proposed amendment is awaiting the court’s consideration.