A federal high court in Abuja yesterday granted the request of
the federal government seeking to extradite one Lawal Olaniyi Babafemi, also
known as Abdullahi Ayatollah Mustapha, wanted in the U.S. for terrorism.
Babafemi was indicted of conspiracy to provide support to a foreign terrorist organisation in violation of Title 18 of the United States code.
This month, the U.S. Embassy requested Babafemi’s extradition on a federal indictment charging he provided support to al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula.
Babafemi was indicted of conspiracy to provide support to a foreign terrorist organisation in violation of Title 18 of the United States code.
This month, the U.S. Embassy requested Babafemi’s extradition on a federal indictment charging he provided support to al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula.
Justice Ahmed Mohammed gave the order after he confirmed from
the suspect that he was not going to contest his extradition to the U.S.
‘‘Since there is no form of any objection by the respondent, Lawal Olaniyi Babafemi, a.k.a. Abdullah Ayatollah Mustapha, to the application for his extradition, this court is satisfied that the application by the Attorney General for the extradition of the respondent to the United States of America is proper and in accordance with the extradition Act 2004,’’ the judge said.
He also ordered that Babafemi be surrendered to U.S. officials not later than 15 days from when the order was made in line with the Extradition Act 2004.
‘‘Since there is no form of any objection by the respondent, Lawal Olaniyi Babafemi, a.k.a. Abdullah Ayatollah Mustapha, to the application for his extradition, this court is satisfied that the application by the Attorney General for the extradition of the respondent to the United States of America is proper and in accordance with the extradition Act 2004,’’ the judge said.
He also ordered that Babafemi be surrendered to U.S. officials not later than 15 days from when the order was made in line with the Extradition Act 2004.
The judge also ruled that Babafemi should remain in the custody
of the Department of State Services until his extradition.
The U.S. government had on July 26, 2013 made a formal request to Nigeria seeking Babafemi’s extradition to answer charges of providing support to terrorist organisations against the United States of America.
The U.S. government had on July 26, 2013 made a formal request to Nigeria seeking Babafemi’s extradition to answer charges of providing support to terrorist organisations against the United States of America.
U.S. court documents said that Babafemi traveled twice from
Nigeria to Yemen to meet and train with leaders of al-Qaida’s branch in Yemen
between January 2010 and August 2011. He assisted in AQAP’s English-language
media operations, which include the publication of the magazine ‘‘Inspire.’’
At the direction of senior AQAP commander Anwar Al-Awlaki, who
was killed on September 30, 2011 in a drone strike in the mountains of Yemen,
Babafemi was provided with $8,600 to recruit English speakers from Nigeria to
join the group, the papers said. While in Yemen, Babafemi also received weapons
training from AQAP.
On February 21, 2013, a grand jury in the Eastern District of
New York returned a sealed indictment. The charges included conspiracy to
provide material support to AQAP, and unlawful use of machine guns.
The Nigerian government started extradition proceedings in July.
The al-Qaida branch claims many terrorist attacks, including the 2009 attempted bombing of a Northwest Airline flight from Amsterdam to Detroit by a Nigerian, Umar Faruk Abdulmutallab, with explosives hidden in his underwear.
The Nigerian government started extradition proceedings in July.
The al-Qaida branch claims many terrorist attacks, including the 2009 attempted bombing of a Northwest Airline flight from Amsterdam to Detroit by a Nigerian, Umar Faruk Abdulmutallab, with explosives hidden in his underwear.
Source: Blueprint
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