Aminu Ogwuche, Boko Haram Ringleader, Became Radicalised While Studying
Aminu Sadiq Ogwuche, a suspected mastermind behind Boko Haram's April 14 Nyanya explosion in Abuja that claimed lives of about 75 persons, is said to have been radicalized while studying at a South Wales university.
On May 14, Ogwuche, now 29, was arrested in Sudan and is expected to be extradited back to Nigeria.
He studied for a degree in Business Science at the University of Glamorgan (now the University of South Wales) from 2007 to 2010, but failed to finish the course. During his time at the university, he was a regular at the campus prayer room and a member of the debating society.
His college friends expressed their shock upon learning the news about Ogwuche's alleged involvement in the Boko Haram terrorist acts.
Speaking to WalesOnline, the university representaitve said Ogwuche did not show any indications of extremist behaviour when he was a student.
Mustafa Ja, a Dutch student who studied at the university from 2009 to 2011, said Ogwuche did not appear to him as someone with radical views. Another student, Anju Moro, said Ogwuche was a devout Muslim and seemed serious but "harmless".
According to WalesOnline, Ogwuche's Facebook posts gradually became more and more extreme, and his profile picture is of a lion with the word Asadullah, meaning Lion of God.
In 2010, he posted on his Facebook wall: "Those who strive in the path of Allah love death like the kuffar love life, hahaha. Let them know, we are always ready to meet our lord anytime he wills."
In 2011, he wrote, "The only punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger and strive to make mischief in the land is that they should be murdered, or crucified, or their hands and their feet should be cut off on opposite sides, or they should be imprisoned."
Another post said: "We warn you to give up your disobeyance to Allah and surrender to him or wait we bring your humiliation then you will be regretful and on the knees."
While composing messages of hate, Ogwuche tried to advertised himself as a respectable business professional: "I used to be in the military back at home and my goal now is to be a successful businessman," he wrote in his online resume.
Ogwuche is also a member of Paltalk - the world's largest online video chat community boasting more than four million members that is being abused by Muslim extremists to preach hate.
Ogwuche is a UK-born ex-Nigerian military intelligence officer (2001-2006) and army defector. For allegedly being involved in terrorist activities, he was arrested in Abuja in November 2011, as soon as he landed on Nigerian soil from the UK. However, in October 2012, he was released on bail to his father, Col. Agene Ogwuche (rtd.).
It would be recalled that five other suspects who confessed to playing a role in the Nyanya explosion, were apprehended by the State Security Service and are to stand trial in the nearest time. Ogwuche's father, Abubakar Sadiq Ogwuche, was also arrested by the SSS for breaching the 2012 bail bond according to which he had obliged to produce his son for questioning whenever required.
Source: Legit.ng
