An Upper Shari’a Court sitting in Rijiyar Zaki Kano, on Monday, ordered the remand of a 38-year-old man, Shafi’u Abubakar, in a corrections centre for allegedly setting a mosque on fire, killing 14 people.
The defendant, who lives at Gadan Village in Gezawa Local Government Area of Kano, is charged with mischief by fire, causing grievous hurt and culpable homicide.
The Prosecution Counsel, Commissioner for Justice and Attorney-General of Kano State, Mr Haruna Isa-Dederi, told the court that the defendant committed the offence on May 15, 2024, at Gadan Village Gezawa Local Government Kano.
He alleged that on the same date at about 5:15 a.m., the defendant used petrol and set a mosque at Gadan Village on fire during subhi(Dawn) prayer.
“The defendant poured the petrol on the carpet where Sani Suleiman and 24 others were praying, and closed the door.
“In the process several people sustained various degrees of injuries and were rushed to Murtala Muhammad Specialist Hospital Kano for treatment, while Suleiman and 13 others died while receiving treatment,” Dederi said
The AG said the case is a capital offence “he urged the court to allow the defendant to get a lawyer to give him his constitutional right.
The defendant, however, pleaded guilty to all three count charges.
According to him, the offence contravenes the provision of sections 336, 247 and 221 of the Kano State Shari’a Penal Code Law.
The presiding judge, Halhalatu Zakariyya, ordered the court registry to write a letter to the Legal Aid Council of Nigeria to provide a lawyer for the defendant.
He ordered the remand of the defendant and adjourned the matter until May 31, for a hearing.
According to the police, the suspect had confessed to attacking the mosque because of a long-standing family dispute over inheritance sharing.
“On May 15, 2024, at about 5:20 a.m. the police received a report of an explosion at a mosque in Gadan Village during the dawn prayer, leaving several people injured.
“Promptly, a team of security personnel, including experts in Explosive Ordnance Disposal Chemical Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (EOD-CBRN), were deployed to the scene.
“Twenty-four victims, including 20 males and four children, who sustained various degrees of injuries were rushed to Murtala Mohammed Specialist Hospital Kano for treatment,” the police in Kano earlier said.
NAN
