AKano State High Court has sentenced five men to death by hanging for murdering a 67-year-old woman, Dahare Abubakar, after accusing her of witchcraft.
The convicts—Da’luta Ibrahim, Abdulaziz Yahaya, Faisal Yahaya, Ibrahim Abdu, and Ayuba Abdulrahman—were found guilty of culpable homicide.
Justice Usman Na’abba ruled that the prosecution had proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt, sentencing the five men to death while acquitting the sixth defendant, Nabi’a Ibrahim, due to lack of evidence linking her to the crime.
The prosecution counsel, Lamido Abba-Sorondinki, told the court that the crime occurred on Nov. 15, 2023, in Dadin Kowa Village, Wudil, Kano.
According to him, the defendants conspired around 8:30 a.m. to attack Abubakar on her farm, stabbing her to death with dangerous weapons.
The victim was rushed to Wudil General Hospital, where she was pronounced dead.
The prosecution presented four witnesses and two exhibits, including extra-judicial statements from the defendants and a medical report confirming the victim’s death.
The defence counsel, Ma’aruf Yakasai, called eight witnesses, including the defendants, who denied the allegations.
The court held that the offence violated Section 221(a), read with Section 79 of the Penal Code Laws of Kano State, 1991.
