A suspected coup plotter, Zekeri Umoru, has revealed in video evidence played before a Federal High Court in Abuja that the alleged mastermind, Colonel Mohammed Ma’aji, plotted to infiltrate the Presidential Villa “with force” and through a compromised ambulance route.
Zekeri Umoru, the fourth defendant in the ongoing trial of six suspected coup plotters at the Federal High Court in Abuja, told a Special Investigative Panel (SIP) that Colonel Mohammed Ma’aji allegedly said he wanted access into the Presidential Villa and could achieve it “with force,” even if those recruited from inside refused to cooperate. In a video previewed in court as part of the exhibits in an ongoing trial-within-trial regarding the voluntariness of the defendants’ extrajudicial statements, Umoru, a Julius Berger maintenance employee who worked at the Presidential Villa clinic project, alleged that Ma’aji, through the third defendant, Police Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim, offered him financial compensation. He claimed he was instructed to recruit between 18 and 19 strategically positioned personnel working within the power seat, including active soldiers, Department of State Services (DSS) operatives, and Julius Berger technical staff. The witness further alleged that discussions were held on plans to switch off electricity within the Presidential Villa to aid the subversion, though he warned that such an action would immediately trigger investigations and the detention of workers on duty.
According to the defendant’s recorded interrogation, tactical negotiations broke down over the hefty logistical costs demanded to secure an unauthorized entry point into the secure complex. Umoru stated that Inspector Ibrahim later demanded one hundred million naira from Ma’aji to facilitate the operation through an ambulance route into the Villa, but Ma’aji reportedly rejected the amount as excessive, insisting that he could still gain entry by force, though “there would be bloodshed.” The defendant told investigators that as the violent nature of the plot escalated, he became uncomfortable with the alleged plan and repeatedly attempted to return the money given to him, insisting that the Presidential Villa “was not child’s play.” He also vehemently denied ever having access to the Villa’s solar power plant, despite separate prosecution allegations that he planned to deliberately sabotage the primary electricity supply within the complex to create operational blindness.
The court also heard from the previewed video that the defendant failed to immediately report the treasonable discussions to state authorities, claiming he was heavily discouraged by Inspector Ibrahim, who allegedly asked him to delete messages and avoid contacting Ma’aji due to an ongoing audit in their office. The playing of the electronic evidence formed part of the broader high-stakes legal battle where defense lawyers are challenging the admissibility of the suspects’ confessions on grounds of coercion. Following the conclusion of the screening of the video evidence, the presiding judge, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik, adjourned the case to May 21 for the continuation of the trial-within-trial. The six civilian defendants, who were remanded in DSS custody following their initial arraignment, continue to face multi-count charges bordering on treason, terrorism financing, and failure to disclose military intelligence.
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