Nigeria charges 6 people, including a retired general, with high treason for planning a coup

Nigerian authorities announced that they had foiled a plot to overthrow President Bola Tinubu, and charged six people, including a retired major general and a serving police inspector, with terrorism and high treason, according to an indictment.

It is noteworthy that all six accused of treason are currently in detention.

A seventh suspect, former Bayelsa State Governor Timbre Sylva, is accused of helping to cover up the plot, and remains at large.

In the 13-count indictment, the authorities stated that the suspects “conspired with each other to wage war against the state with the aim of intimidating the President of the Federal Republic (of Nigeria).”

Last January, the Nigerian government announced that it had thwarted a coup attempt when it announced the trial of a number of army officers.

These officers were among a group of 16 military personnel who were arrested in 2025 on charges of what the military authorities described as “acts of chaos and violation of service regulations,” which fueled rumors about a coup plot that the government initially denied.