A special military tribunal (SMT) in Jos arraigned Malaolu, editor of the daily newspaper The Diet, for alleged involvement in a coup plot. He had been arrested without charge at the paper’s offices. On April 28, 1998, Malaou was tried and convicted by the tribunal for “information gathering” and “implication in the alleged coup plot of December 1997,” and sentenced to life imprisonment with no right of appeal. On July 10, Malaolu’s sentence was reduced to 15 years. He is currently in jail in Katsina Prison, where he is reportedly critically ill and denied medical treatment.