DSS DG Demonstrates Commitment to Human Rights, Releases 12 Suspects, Pays Compensation
Two months after awarding ₦20 million in damages to a Jos-based businessman mistakenly shot during a 2016 operation, the Director General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Mr. Tosin Ajayi, has again shown commitment to justice and human rights. On Saturday, he ordered the release of Abdulyakini Salisu, a quarry operator who had been held since 2022 over a case of mistaken identity.
With Salisu’s release, the number of suspects freed by the DSS in July 2025 alone has risen to 12.
According to reliable security sources, Ajayi not only apologized to Salisu but also directed the payment of ₦10 million as “initial compensation,” with further assistance being considered. Salisu is also entitled to free medical care at the DSS hospital for life, by directive of the DG.
Sources say Salisu’s wrongful arrest followed a misidentification in a kidnapping case along the Zuba-Kaduna expressway. His release follows similar high-profile exonerations under Ajayi’s reforms.
On July 1, eleven other suspects previously arrested in Osun State on terrorism-related charges were released and compensated. Among them were:
Mohammed Adamu
Adamu Abubakar
Mohammed Bindi
Baba Kura Mallam
The DG reportedly ordered disciplinary action against all officers involved in the wrongful detentions.
In another development, the DSS also reviewed the case of Mohammed Ciroma Jr., a 400-level Computer Science student of Modibbo Adama University, Yola, who was wrongly detained. Upon review, Ajayi ordered his reinstatement to the university and granted him a full scholarship, to be funded by the Service.
Recall that in May 2025, the DSS paid ₦20 million in compensation to a businessman in Jos who had been shot in error due to a name mix-up with a gunrunner.
A top DSS source, who asked not to be named, said Ajayi’s instructions are clear: the Service must take all reports of unjust detentions seriously—regardless of the source.
> “When Sahara Reporters published a piece on Salisu’s case, the DG immediately requested a report within 48 hours. Once he confirmed the facts, he wasted no time in ordering Salisu’s release and compensation,” said the source.
Since taking office in August 2024, Ajayi has initiated sweeping reforms aimed at repositioning the DSS to be both more efficient and more humane. He ordered a review of all inherited detention cases and prohibited the open display of weapons by operatives.
> “Ajayi doesn’t deny that there were past abuses,” the source added. “But he believes in owning up to mistakes, offering apologies, and providing redress where necessary. That’s leadership.”
The DSS’s evolving posture under Ajayi aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s directive for security agencies to operate without compromising citizens’ rights.
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