The State Security Service (SSS) says it has freed and compensated a man who was wrongly detained for an alleged role in the abduction of 46 pupils, including seven teachers, from three schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The SSS media unit disclosed this in a press statement shared with PREMIUM TIMES on Tuesday. According to the statement, the man, identified as Mustapha Marwana, was initially linked to the Ansaru terror group.
However, the SSS director general, Oluwatosin Ajayi, ordered his “immediate release” following an investigation by a panel “which established that Katsina -born Mustapha is not a member of any terrorist organisation and had no operational links with the Ansaru terrorist group.”
“Mustapha was arrested in connection with the abduction and killing of school pupils and teachers in Oriire LGA, Oyo State,” the statement reads. “He was subsequently subjected to thorough investigation to establish the extent, if any, of his involvement in the activities under investigation.”
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PREMIUM TIMES reported that terrorists invaded the schools on 15 May, kidnapping the students and their teachers. The assailants killed one teacher before leaving the scene and another in captivity.
A few days later, the Defence Headquarters identified the terrorist responsible for the abduction as Boko Haram members. The captives regained freedom nearly 60 days after their abduction following security operations.
President Bola Tinubu later issued a statement blaming the Ansaru terror group for the abduction. The president also said the terror group demanded the release of its arrested leaders as a condition for freeing the kidnapped victims, but the government made no concessions and instead secured the release through targeted security operations.
The federal government, thereafter, charged and sentenced three men, including two Ansaru leaders already in custody in connection with the abduction.
Mr Marwana’s case
However, Mr Marwana, a carpenter, has never been named in any of these charges.
The SSS said investigators found no evidence linking him to the attack and membership of the terror group. In addition to the release order, the SSS said its director-general also approved “the payment of initial N3 million as compensation to assist him in meeting his immediate needs and restarting livelihood.”
The SSS said the man was released to his lawyer, Oghene Forgive.
It said Mr Marwana expressed appreciation to the director general for his compassionate and humane intervention.
His lawyer, Mr Forgive, also reportedly thanked the SSS boss “for his generosity and dedication to establishing Mustapha’s innocence.”
The SSS explained that the compensation was part of measures being adopted by the current SSS leadership to support persons cleared after investigations and facilitate their reintegration into society.
This newspaper reported how the service awarded a N20 million compensation to a Sokoto-based businessman who was accidentally shot and injured in 2016. The man was mistaken for another person during a pre-dawn raid in Jos, Plateau State.
In another instance, the SSS also released an Abuja-based businesswoman, Chineze Ozoadibe, and gave her N10 million as compensation in October 2025 after reviewing her case.
The SSS said that since the appointment of Mr Ajayi as its director-general, he has resolved and prioritised cases of human rights, resulting in the payment of over N300 million as compensation.