A High Court in Jos, Plateau State, on Monday, December 8, sentenced Police Sergeant Ruya Auta to death by hanging or lethal injection for the killing of 20-year-old university student, Rinji Bala, in May 2020.
Auta, who was attached to Operation Safe Haven, now renamed Operation Ensuring Peace, was found guilty of shooting the undergraduate at the task force’s Sector 1 base in Jos during a security operation on May 13, 2020.
Speaking after the judgment, Senior Advocate of Nigeria Garba Pwul, who represented the Plateau State Government in the case, described the verdict as the outcome of “five years of efforts and tenacity” to secure justice. “It is a capital offence, so we had to follow the case carefully. Today, we have seen justice served,” he said.
Witness Relives Trauma in Court
For Emmanuel Gyang, who witnessed the incident, the ruling reopened painful memories. He told journalists that he had lived with the trauma since the night his childhood friend was shot. “Since that day, there has been no peace,” he said. “The rest of the world moved on, but we stayed with that day.”
Gyang recalled sitting in court as the judge delivered the verdict, noting that the proceedings forced him to relive moments he had long tried to forget. “It was while the judgment was being read that some things dawned on me again,” he said.
How the Incident Unfolded
Rinji and five friends had gone out for an evening stroll near their Hwolshe community at about 6:30 p.m. when a mob, alarmed by recent robberies in the area, mistook them for thieves. Soldiers intervened but later handed the young men over to a team at the Operation Safe Haven base.
Upon arrival at the base, the group was severely beaten, according to accounts shared by survivors. They were later ordered to run toward the exit. It was at the gate—around 8:35 p.m.—that Auta fired the shot that killed Rinji.
Medical reports later showed that the bullet pierced the victim’s lower body and caused fatal injuries.
Family Seeks Closure, Not Celebration
Rinji’s father, Peter Bala, who attended every court session since 2020, said the family was not celebrating the death sentence but viewed the verdict as necessary accountability. “There have to be consequences for every action, and some form of deterrence,” he was quoted as saying.
Rinji was a third-year History and International Relations student at the University of Jos. He was the lastborn and only son in a family of three children. He dreamt of becoming a diplomat and launching his own fashion line.
Operation Safe Haven had claimed in a 2020 statement that the shooting was accidental, saying the officer mistook the fleeing boys for escaping suspects. However, witnesses insisted that Auta acted deliberately and showed no remorse throughout the trial.
As the judgment closed a major chapter in the five-year pursuit of justice, Rinji’s friends and family said they hoped the case would serve as a reminder of the need for accountability within Nigeria’s security agencies.
“We do not want Rinji to be forgotten,” Emmanuel said. “Hopefully, those who spread false stories about what happened will now allow us to heal.”
