RismadarVoice Reporters
October 27, 2026
The Federal High Court in Abuja has struck out a cybercrime case against Sanusi Dankaka, who was accused of threatening to publish nude photographs and videos purportedly involving Kano State Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf.
Justice Salim Ibrahim struck out the case on Tuesday following an application by the prosecution to withdraw the charges against the defendant.
The prosecution counsel, A.Y. Afegbua, informed the court of the decision to discontinue the proceedings, while Dankaka’s lawyer, Kauna Penzin, did not object.
The judge subsequently granted the application and struck out the case without proceeding to trial.
Dankaka had earlier been arraigned by the Department of State Services (DSS) on two counts bordering on alleged cybercrime offences.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges during his arraignment on Monday, October 26, after which the court ordered his remand at the Kuje Correctional Centre.
The matter was initially adjourned until December 7 for the commencement of trial.
However, it was subsequently relisted as the 28th and final case on Tuesday’s cause list, allowing the prosecution’s withdrawal application to be considered.
According to the News Agency of Nigeria, the charges were contained in a document marked FHC/ABJ/CR/699/2026, filed on October 22.
In the first count, the DSS alleged that Dankaka, alongside other individuals said to be at large, used a Facebook account identified as Sanusi Dankaka Yahaya to threaten the publication of purported nude images involving Governor Yusuf.
The security agency alleged that the defendant claimed to possess the materials and threatened to release them publicly.
In the second count, the prosecution accused him of publishing claims about possessing the purported materials despite allegedly knowing that the information was false.
The DSS maintained that the alleged conduct was intended to cause annoyance, inconvenience, insult and reputational injury to the governor.
The charges cited provisions of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015, as amended.
However, the allegations were not tested at trial following the prosecution’s decision to withdraw the case.
The court’s ruling brought the proceedings to an end without a determination of the defendant’s guilt or innocence.
The prosecution did not provide a publicly reported explanation for its decision to withdraw the charges.
There has also been no independent confirmation that the purported photographs or videos exist.
