In an ongoing trial at the Federal High Court in Abuja, Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), faces terrorism charges. A key piece of evidence presented by the prosecution was the death certificate of Ahmed Gulak, a former presidential adviser to ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, who was murdered in Owerri, Imo State, in May 2021. The Nigerian government has attributed Gulak's killing to IPOB, linking it to a series of violent attacks carried out during a stay-at-home order imposed by Kanu as part of IPOB’s secessionist movement. IPOB has denied any involvement in the killing.

The prosecution's second witness, identified as BBB, testified behind a shield, in accordance with the court’s witness protection ruling. Led by Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), the prosecution argued that Kanu’s sit-at-home directive, broadcast via radio, directly led to Gulak’s assassination. The witness, who confirmed his participation in the investigation into Gulak’s death, presented a certified true copy of the death certificate, dated 18 July 2021, obtained from the police. The defense lawyer, Kanu Agabi (SAN), did not object to its admission, and the judge, James Omotosho, marked it as Exhibit PWJ.

The death certificate, originating from the Nigerian police in Owerri, Imo State, stated that Ahmed Gulak was shot dead by IPOB members in 2021. Witness BBB affirmed in court that Kanu had called for a sit-at-home protest, which, according to the prosecution, incited the events leading to Gulak's death. BBB testified that the death certificate confirmed Gulak died as a result of gunshot wounds inflicted by IPOB members. The certificate was admitted into evidence as Exhibit PWJ, after which the defense began its cross-examination.

Ahmed Gulak, a former Speaker of the Adamawa State House of Assembly, had defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2018, after serving as a presidential adviser to President Jonathan until 2015. He was killed on May 29, 2021, while traveling from Imo State to Abuja. Gulak had chaired the APC's 2019 governorship primary committee in Imo State, which produced Hope Uzodinma as the party's candidate. Owerri, with its significant IPOB presence, has been a focal point of conflict between security forces and IPOB. The assassination occurred during a period when IPOB's stay-at-home orders were strictly enforced in the South-east.

Following Gulak's death, the Nigerian government arrested Nnamdi Kanu in Kenya in June 2021 and brought him back to Nigeria to resume his trial, which had been stalled since 2015 after his escape from Nigeria in 2018. Kanu faces charges of incitement, unlawful broadcasting, and terrorism due to his leadership in IPOB, which the Nigerian authorities designated as a terrorist organization in 2017.