Mohamed Abdi Ali alias Abu Ramzi, was on Monday April 22, 2024 sentenced to 12 years in jail over terrorism related activities. 

This was after the Chief Magistrate’s Court at the Milimani Law Court in Nairobi found him guilty of five counts of the eight with which he was charged.

Abu Ramzi has been in police remand for 8 years following his arrest in 2016 over terrorism related activities.

The 34-year-old suspect was arrested at a medical facility in Wote, Makueni County, where he was working as an intern medic having completed his studies at the Kampala International University between 2010 and 2015.

25 witnesses including Uganda’s Counter-Terrorism detectives, US Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) agents and Kenya’s Anti-Terrorism Police detectives testified in the case where Abu Ramzi was found guilty.

He was charged with, among others, being a member of a terrorist group (ISIS), recruitment of members of a terrorist group and possession of articles connected with the commission of a terrorism act.

In her ruling, Chief Magistrate Martha Mutuku considered the gravity of the offences committed, before sentencing the suspect to 12 years’ imprisonment for each count, with the five jail terms running concurrently from the time the suspect was arrested in April 2016.

Meanwhile, the DCI commended the investigators for their concerted efforts which swiftly rid the terrorist off the streets.

According to the DCI, Abu Ramzi was planning a biological weapon attack in the country, at the time he was arrested.

Additionally, the DCI expressed optimism that the sentence awarded to Ramzi is adequate for officers at the correctional facilities to help him change.