Military Intelligence Officers of the Nigerian Army are still questioning many retired and active ones believed to at least have knowledge of the coup plot .
At the last count 40 suspects are under interrogation.
Of recent arrest was a retired Army General, Mohammed Ibrahim Gana, allegedly linked with some military officers and civilians currently accused of planning military coup against President Bola Tinubu’s government.
Gana is from Niger State, and Danmagayaki of Nupe.
From the information the newspot is gathering, this alleged coup plot could be a phantom one until those arrested are given fair trial lawyer Kunle Damlong proffered.
“A retired Army General, Mohammed Ibrahim Gana, was also arrested. He is said to be the one who helped the alleged mastermind of the coup, Colonel Alhassan Ma’aji, get admission into NDA in August 1995. Being Ma’aji’s godfather, they believed he was aware of the plan, nothing else was linked to him apart from that,” a military source told SaharaReporters.
“Also, the retired General’s son, who is presently a Lieutenant Colonel, was also arrested and has been in detention as well. Nothing was traced to him as well as he was busy fighting Boko Haram in Borno, but they still believed he has a link with the cou
“We have many other civilians, including mechanics, picked up for allegedly repairing some vehicles for the said plotters as well. Even a Julius Berger staff – just to show you the so-called DIA operatives aren’t intelligent as they claimed – and many innocent people who know nothing about the issue are in detention.
Those listed include serving and retired senior military officers, a police inspector attached to the Presidential Villa, and civilians accused of roles spanning reconnaissance, funding, logistics and propaganda.
It was earlier reported that the arrest of a policeman alongside military officers accused of planning to overthrow the President. The police officer, identified as Inspector Ahmed Ibrahim, is from Taraba State. SaharaReporters learnt that Ibrahim was arrested in Abuja by operatives of the Defence Intelligence Agency and is currently in the agency’s custody.
Among the 35 military officers detained are: an Army Brigadier General, 2 Colonels, 5 Lieutenant Colonels, 1 Wing Commander (Air Force equivalent of a Lieutenant Colonel in the Army), 8 Majors, 1 Lieutenant Commander (Navy equivalent of a Major in the Army), 2 Squadron Leaders (Air Force equivalent of a Major in the Army), 5 Captains, and a Lieutenant.
Also in detention are 10 non-commissioned officers (NCOs), which include a Warrant Officer, 5 Sergeants, one Corporal, and two Lance Corporals. While one of the detained Army Captains, A. Yusuf, is from Osun State, Squadron Leader Zuzu, a senior Air Force Officer, is from Bayelsa State. The 33 others are all from the Northern part of the country, including the FCT, with 3 officers.
Two of the officers, a Brigadier General and a Lieutenant Colonel, are from Nasarawa State; 6, including three non-commissioned officers, are from Niger State. Three are from Katsina State, including a Colonel who was undergoing a course in a North African country.
Three of the affected officers, all Lieutenant Colonels, are from Kaduna, Plateau, and Kano States. Two Majors are both from Gombe State, while another is from Bauchi. Others are from Kebbi, Jigawa, Zamfara, Taraba, Yobe, Kogi, Sokoto, and Adamawa.
In October 2025, SaharaReporters exclusively reported how some military officers were arrested by the DIA in Abuja over an alleged plot to overthrow President Tinubu’s government.
The military agency, established in 1986, is Nigeria’s primary military intelligence body. It is responsible for gathering and providing intelligence to the Nigerian Armed Forces and the Ministry of Defence to counter security threats, safeguard national integrity, and support military operations, including ongoing efforts against terrorism and insurgency.
Sources at the Defence Headquarters confirmed that the officers, drawn from the Nigerian Army, Navy, and Air Force, were arrested in coordinated operations by military intelligence operatives following weeks of covert surveillance.
Despite earlier official denials of any coup plot, Monday’s statement by the DHQ now formally acknowledges that allegations of plotting to overthrow the government were among the findings against some of the detained officers
Full list of suspects identified
Documents obtained by this newspaper list the following 40 individuals:
1. MA Sadiq (Brigadier General) – Army Headquarters Garrison
2. MA Ma’aji (Colonel) – Defence Space Administration
3. S Bappah (Lieutenant Colonel) – 525 Signal Regiment
4. AA Hayatu (Lieutenant Colonel) – 130 Battalion Main, Ogoja
5. P Dangnap (Lieutenant Colonel) – 134 Special Forces Battalion
6. M Almakura (Lieutenant Colonel) – 197 Special Forces Battalion
7. AA Jarma (Lieutenant Colonel) – Commanding Officer, 35 Battalion, Katsina
8. SM Gana (Lieutenant Colonel) – 115 Task Force Battalion
9. AD Dauda (Major) – Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji
10. JM Ganaks (Major) – Armed Forces Command and Staff College, Jaji
11. AJ Ibrahim (Major) – Army Headquarters, Department of Policy and Plans
12. MM Jiddah (Major) – 26 Battalion
13. MA Usman (Major) – 35 Battalion
14. D Yusuf (Major) – Forward Operating Base, Molai
15. J Iliyasu (Major) – 3 Division Garrison
16. A Mohammed (Major) – 63 Brigade Garrison
17. DB Abdullahi (Lieutenant Commander) – Naval Base, Abuja
18. SB Adamu (Squadron Leader) – National Counter Terrorism Centre
19. NG Zuzu (Squadron Leader) – Headquarters, Nigerian Air Force Camp
20. EO Victor (Navy Captain, Retired) – 3 Abraham Avenue, Port Harcourt
21. Umoru Zekeri – Julius Berger, Presidential Villa Electrician
22. Y Nasiru (Lance Corporal) – 82 Division Garrison
23. Sambo Danladi (Lance Corporal) – 82 Division Garrison
24. Abdul Abdullahi (Staff Sergeant) – 82 Division Garrison
25. Ali Isah – Presidential Villa Ambulance Driver
26. ML Mohammed (Captain) – 18 Battalion
27. UI Yusuf (Wing Commander) – Helicopter Flying School, Enugu
28. IM Gana (Major General, Retired) – No. 34A Army Estate, Kubwa
29. Stanley Kingley Amandi – Actor, alleged propagandist
30. G Binuga (Captain) – 1 Nigerian Military Force Brigade
31. AA Yusuf (Captain) – Nigerian Army School of Finance and Administration (NASFA)
32. I Bello (Captain) – 82 Division Garrison
33. SS Felix (Lieutenant) – 81 Division Provost Group
34. J Aminu (Lieutenant) – Headquarters, Directorate of Army Public Relations
35. Nasiru Ibrahim (Warrant Officer) – 82 Division Garrison
36. Sanda Usman (Sergeant) – 167 Special Forces Battalion
37. Mohammed Zubairu (Sergeant) – 177 Guards Battalion
38. Momoh Audu (Corporal) – 343 Artillery Regiment
39. Ahmed Ibrahim (Inspector) – 24 Police Mobile Force, Presidential Villa
40. Goni Bukar – civilian
Security officials said several suspects remain at large, including alleged financiers, while others are already in custody and facing further interrogation.
Authorities stressed that all listed individuals remain innocent until proven guilty, as legal and military judicial processes move forward..See More