The Nigerian High Court in Kwara State sentenced five defendants on Thursday to death for their involvement in bank robberies.
Judge Haleemah Salman allowed the defendants to take pleas of mercy but eventually sentenced all to the gallows.
"The five of you shall be hanged on your neck until you are dead to serve as a lesson to others," she said in her ruling.
Daredevil robbers stormed Offa town of Kwara State in 2018 and robbed at least five commercial banks in the ancient town.
Sentence 'too harsh'
Thirty-three people, including nine policemen, were killed in the robbery, as the culprits made off with an undisclosed sum of cash.
One suspect died in police custody while the remaining defendants pleaded not guilty.
Bashir Mohammed, an activist with the Nigeria Network of Human Rights, criticised the ruling.
"The judgment is too harsh and the court should have shown leniency," Mohammed told Anadolu, adding that the judge could have handed the defendants life in prison
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