Police officer sentenced to death five years after killing UNIJOS student

A police sergeant, Ruya Auta, has been sentenced to death for the shooting of 20-year-old University of Jos student, Rinji “Bobo” Bala.

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The verdict, delivered five years after the incident, was handed down by the Plateau State Chief Judge. David Mann, on Tuesday.

The ruling is one of the rare cases in Nigeria where a police officer has been held accountable for an extrajudicial killing.

The night of the shooting

The case traces back to the night of 12 May 2020, when Mr Auta, part of a joint security patrol enforcing COVID-19 lockdown rules in Jos, stopped Mr Rinji and two friends near Hwolshe in Jos.

Court records and witness testimonies indicate that the officers searched the young men, found nothing incriminating, but accused them of violating lockdown regulations.

What followed, according to witnesses, was intimidation and brief detainment. After ordering the boys to run, Mr Auta fired his rifle. The bullet struck Mr Rinji from behind, killing him instantly.

“He was unarmed and fleeing as instructed. There was no threat,” a prosecution source told PREMIUM TIMES. “This was not an accident. It was unlawful force.”

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Public outrage and early investigation

The killing sparked public anger, amplified on social media, well before the #EndSARS protests thrust police brutality into national attention.

As civil society groups and student organisations called for justice, the police announced Mr Auta’s arrest, an unusually swift response for such cases.

However, after the initial uproar, the case stalled. Between 2020 and 2022, prosecutors struggled with missing case files, unavailable witnesses, and repeated adjournments.

COVID-19 restrictions compounded delays, while the Ministry of Justice took nearly three years to issue a fiat empowering a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Garba Pwul to lead the prosecution.

“A long stretch of inactivity nearly buried the matter,” a judicial official said.

Case momentum restored

Momentum returned in 2023 when the chief judge issued directives to accelerate stalled criminal cases. Key witnesses returned, and forensic experts testified that the bullet was fired from close range, striking Mr Rinji from behind, contradicting claims of accidental discharge.

Medical experts confirmed the trajectory aligned with a fleeing victim, and friends of Mr Rinji recounted the beatings and the moment the shots were fired.

By late 2024, the prosecution had firmly established that Mr Auta had abused his authority, applied excessive force, and caused the unlawful death of a civilian.

The verdict

On 9 December, Justice Mann delivered a judgment that stunned the courtroom.

“The prosecution has established beyond reasonable doubt that the shooting was intentional,” he ruled, sentencing Auta to death by hanging or lethal injection.

For Mr Rinji’s father, Peter Bala, the verdict brings a measure of closure.

“We are not celebrating another man’s death,” he told PREMIUM TIMES. “But the judgment shows that truth finally prevailed.”

The family maintained a low profile throughout the proceedings, insisting only that the state fulfil its duty to their son.

Speaking after the judgment, Mr Pwul (SAN), the prosecuting counsel, said the verdict reflected the strength of the prosecution’s case.

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“The judgment was actually expected, as the convict did not deny the offence. He claimed it was an accidental discharge, but evidence established that the shooting was intentional,” Mr Pwul said.

Mr Bala, father of the deceased, expressed mixed emotions over the ruling.

“No sane person would celebrate the death of another human being, but the law must take its course,” he said, adding that he hopes the judgment serves as a deterrent to negligent security officers.