Supreme Court Takes Major Action on Trial of Major Al-Mustapha in Kudirat Abiola’s Murder Case
- Supreme Court dismissed Lagos state's appeal against Major Hamza Al-Mustapha's acquittal for Kudirat Abiola's murder
- Al-Mustapha’s 2012 death sentence was overturned after the court found the charges politically motivated and lacking any evidence linking him
- Lagos state abandoned its appeal after nine years of inaction, court rules abandonment indicated lack of diligent prosecution
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Legit.ng journalist Ridwan Adeola Yusuf has over 9 years of experience covering public affairs and governance in Nigeria and Africa.
FCT, Abuja - The Supreme Court has dismissed the case against Major Hamza Al-Mustapha (rtd), a presidential hopeful and former chief security officer (CSO) to the late military head of state, General Sani Abacha.
The case involved the murder of a pro-democracy activist and the wife of Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola, the presumed winner of the June 12, 1993, presidential election.
Source: Twitter
Legit.ng recalls that Kudirat was shot dead in Lagos on June 4, 1996.
As reported by Leadership, the trial of Al-Mustapha on the murder charge brought by the Lagos state government was, however, laid to rest on Thursday, January 22, 2026, by a five-member panel of the Supreme Court led by Justice Uwani Aba-Aji.
Arise News also noted the development.
Kudirat Abiola: Al-Mustapha vs Lagos govt concluded
In a ruling delivered on Thursday, January 22, Justice Aba-Aji held that Lagos state had abandoned its appeal. The court noted that since 2014, when leave was granted to challenge the acquittal of Al-Mustapha, the state failed to file any processes or appear through legal representation, despite repeated hearing notices.
Counsel to Al-Mustapha, Paul Daudu, a senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN), told the court that Lagos ignored a 30-day ultimatum issued in 2014 to file its notice of appeal. He urged the court to dismiss the matter for want of diligent prosecution.
Justice Aba-Aji, while delivering the ruling, said nine years was more than sufficient for the state to act, describing Lagos’ inaction as a clear indication that the appeal had been abandoned.
Consequently, the court dismissed appeal number SC/CR/45/2014, as well as a related appeal, SC/CR/6/2014, both filed by the Lagos state government.
Source: Facebook
Al-Mustapha's death sentence overturned
Legit.ng recalls that Major Hamza Al-Mustapha was sentenced to death in 2012 for allegedly ordering the killing of Kudirat Abiola. She was shot dead in 1996, three years after the elections, her husband, MKO Abiola, is believed to have won.
Those elections were annulled, and Abacha seized power.
He went on to become one of Nigeria's most notorious military rulers, accused of stealing billions of dollars from the oil-rich nation.
Abacha and Abiola both died in 1998, paving the way for the end of decades of military rule the following year.
In 2013, the appeal court ruled that the charges of murder and conspiracy had been politically motivated.
Judge Rita Pemu stated at the time, according to AFP:
"There is no evidence linking the appellant to the offence. Therefore, the appellant is discharged and acquitted."
Major Mustapha's lawyers appealed in December 2012, condemning as an "injustice" the many years he had spent in detention during the much-delayed case.
The prosecution, however, later appealed to the Supreme Court.
One of Abacha's sons, Mohammed, was also accused of links to Mrs Abiola's killing but was cleared in 2002 after three years in detention.
After Abacha seized power, Abiola declared himself president and was charged with treason.
He died in detention after a visit by the United States (US) and the United Nations (UN) officials, a month after Abacha died from a heart attack.
Kudirat: Supreme Court's verdict draws criticism
Meanwhile, Dr Sulaimon Adigun Muse, a senior lecturer in the department of political science education, Lagos State University of Education (LASUED), Nigeria, in an interview with Legit.ng, criticised the Supreme Court's verdict.
Muse, the president of the Global Academy of Political Entrepreneurship and Leadership (GAPEL), said:
"In as much as the judiciary should be respected, the judiciary should also not give the public the wrong perception about the institution. What has happened can simply be described as a miscarriage of justice.
"We all know how brutal Abacha is and we all know the role Al Mustapha played in that regime. To the extent that Al Mustapha himself publicly apologised to the Abiola family at the Oputah Panel (unverified claim though). For them now to say he is being exonerated, perhaps, on some technical ground, to my mind, that is a miscarriage of justice.
"And the incident has also added to the long list of unresolved presumed politically-motivated killings in Nigeria. The case of Funsho Williams is there; Alfred Rewane is there, Bola Ige is there, and the case of Alhaja Kudirat Abiola. I think we need to put our house in order so that we don't give gold medal to criminals and then we tongue-lash those trying to improve the lives of the people. So, we need to go back and reset the judiciary, the executive, and the legislature. All the three arms of government have one issue or the other to deal with"
Why Kudirat Abiola was killed
Legit.ng earlier reported that a daughter of Kudirat Abiola spoke about her mother's assassination.
In a video obtained by Legit.ng, Abiola’s daughter described her mother as an ordinary person who built an extraordinarily powerful movement.
Proofreading by Funmilayo Aremu, copy editor at Legit.ng.
Source: Legit.ng
