Five colleagues of former State Minister for Petroleum Timipre Sylva were charged by the Department of State Services on Wednesday before the Federal High Court in Abuja with allegedly concealing information about his whereabouts.
Judge Peter Lifu heard a two-count charge against the defendants, Reuben Ayuba, Musa Mohammed, Friday Paul, Paganengigha Anagaha, and Ayebaifie Suobite, for allegedly hiding Sylva's location. The prosecution classified Sylva as a fugitive.
According to the DSS, on April 28, 2026, the defendants became accomplices after the fact by concealing Sylva's location, which contravenes Section 519 of the Criminal Code Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
In violation of Section 516 of the Criminal Code, they were additionally charged with conspiring to commit a felony by hiding the whereabouts of the alleged fugitive. Each of the five defendants entered a not guilty plea.
Emmanuel Orubor, the DSS's attorney, then asked the court to set a start date for the trial. Each defendant's attorney submitted a separate bail application.
Reuben Ayuba and Paganengigha Anagaha, the first and fourth defendants, were represented by Senior Advocate of Nigeria Sanusi Musa, who pleaded with the court to grant his clients bail.
Ibrahim Imadegbelo for the second defendant, Musa Mohammed; I. G. Kelubia for the third defendant, Friday Paul; and E. C. Sogo for the fifth defendant, Ayebaifie Suobite, all submitted similar applications.
The defense attorneys asked Justice Lifu to grant their clients bail on lenient terms after informing the court that their clients had been detained by the DSS since October 25, 2025. In a decision, Justice Lifu granted each defendant bail of N5 million with two sureties of the same amount.
The judge ordered each surety to provide a recent passport photo, an affidavit of means, verification of three years' worth of tax payments, and proof of a credible source of income.
Additionally, Justice Lifu directed the court registrar to confirm the sureties' identities. The accused were ordered to be held at the Kuje Correctional Center until the bail terms were perfected.
In order to start the trial, the judge postponed the case to July 22.
The prosecution said in the indictment that the defendants "became accessories after the fact of felony by concealing the whereabouts of Timipre Silva, who is a fugitive from the law."
They allegedly plotted to conduct the crime by hiding his location, according to the second count.
DSS Arraigns Five for Allegedly Concealing Sylva's whereabouts for supporting a purported coup attempt against President Bola Tinubu.
The government accused his younger brother, Moses Sylva, and a number of other people in April of hiding information about his whereabouts in order to thwart his capture when he was declared wanted.
Sylva has refuted any misconduct in the meantime. Nigerian officials claimed to have discovered people connected to a significant conspiracy to topple Tinubu's government. Treason and terrorism charges have been brought against several people in the purported October 2025 conspiracy.
Col. Mohammed Ma'aji, former Maj. Gen. Mohammed Gana, retired Navy Capt. Victor Erasmus Ochegobia, and current Police Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim were among the important parties on trial.
Internal court-martial tribunals are facing a number of additional active military officers.
The operation would have been violent, according to intelligence, with plans to kill the president, vice president, and main National Assembly leadership. The original plan was for the conspiracy to take place on October 1, 2025, Nigeria's Independence Day.
However, as security agencies learned of the intrusion, the celebratory procession at Eagle Square was abruptly canceled at the last minute.
The mutiny and the arrest of more than sixteen officers were formally acknowledged by Defense Headquarters, and the Federal High Court is currently holding hearings for treason and terrorism.