A Federal High Court in Abuja has scheduled a ruling for December 7 on the outcome of the trial-within-trial to determine whether the six defendants made statements to investigators voluntarily.
The defendants are retired Maj.-Gen. Mohammed Gana, retired Navy Capt. Erasmus Victor, Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim, Zekeri Umoru, Bukar Goni and Abdulkadir Sani.
Justice Joyce Abdulmalik ordered the trial-within-trial on May 11 after the defendants’ lawyers objected to the admissibility of the defendants’ statements, arguing, among other things, that they were coerced into making them, some of which contained admissions.
Justice Abdulmalik chose the date for ruling on Wednesday after lawyers for both the prosecution and defence made their final submissions and adopted their written addresses on the trial-within-trial.
While the lawyer for the prosecution, Maryam Okorie, urged the court to hold that the defendants volunteered their statements and to admit them along with other accompanying exhibits, lawyers for the defendants urged the court otherwise.
The defendants were arraigned on April 22 on a 13-count charge filed for the Federal Government by the Office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF).
A former Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timpre Sylva, was mentioned in the charge, but was said to be at large.
The defendants pleaded not guilty when the charge, marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/206/2026, was read to them.
They are charged with offences ranging from treason and terrorism to failure to disclose security intelligence and money laundering linked to terrorism financing.
The defendants objected to the admissibility of their statements when the prosecution, which had called four witnesses, applied to tender them in evidence.
In a video evidence played in court on May 20, Umoru (the fourth defendant) was heard saying that discussions were held among the alleged plotters on switching off electricity supply to the Presidential Villa, Abuja, to aid the execution of the alleged coup.
Umoru, an employee in the Maintenance Department of Julius Berger Nigeria Plc, stationed at the Presidential Villa, said he warned that such an action would immediately trigger investigations and the detention of workers on duty if it were carried out.
He alleged that Col. Mohammed Ma’aji, the alleged coup mastermind, offered him money, through Insp. Ahmed Ibrahim, the 3rd defendant, to recruit between 18 and 19 persons working inside the Villa.
Umoru said those to be recruited include soldiers, officials of the Department of State Services (DSS) and Julius Berger staff.
He also told investigators that Ma’aji allegedly said he wanted access to the Presidential Villa and could achieve it ‘with force,’ even if those recruited from inside decline to cooperate.
The sixth defendant, Sheikh Sani Abdulkadir, an Islamic cleric, said in another video evidence that he warned the co-suspects that the plan would fail and that they would eventually be exposed.
Abdulkadir, a Zaria-based Imam, said he was informed about the plot and recruited to pray against the leakage of information about the activities of those behind it.