Crime

Deborah Killers: 34 lawyers to Defend Suspects

By Web News 672

The police on Monday arraigned two suspects, Bilyaminu Aliyu and Aminu Hukunci, over the lynching of Deborah Samuel on May 12, with the defence team boasting of 34 lawyers.

A mob of Muslim extremists comprising colleagues and co-students of the deceased, lynched Ms Samuel over alleged blasphemy, sparking nationwide outrage by Nigerians.

The suspects were docked at a Sokoto Chief Magistrate’s Court for their alleged participation in the crime. They pleaded not guilty to the crime.

Prosecuting inspector, Khalil Musa, told the court that investigation was in progress as Ms Samuel’s corpse was still in a morgue at the Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital, Sokoto.

Leading a team of 34 lawyers, the defence counsel, Mansur Ibrahim, applied for their bail on liberal terms citing constitutional provisions and sections of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law.

The trial judge (name withheld for security reasons) reserved ruling on the bail application and ordered the accused to be remanded at a correctional centre.

Before she was lynched, Ms Samuel, a 200-Level Home Economics student of Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto, was accused of denigrating Islam on a school WhatsApp chat platform set up by her coursemates.

A violent street protest by Islamic extremists followed the arrest of suspects linked to the lynching of Ms Samuel as the protesters demanded their release by security operatives.

Governor Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto consequently imposed a 24-hour curfew on the state metropolis on Saturday, relaxing the curfew on Monday to be observed from dusk to dawn.

NewsAfresh/ Titilayo Kupoliyi

News

Deborah Samuel: Gov. Tambuwal Relaxes Curfew

By Web News 497

Sokoto State Government has ordered the relaxation of the 24 hour curfew in force in the state metropolis.

In a statement signed by the State Commissioner for Information, Isa Bajini Galadanci says the relaxation followed a briefing by the Security Heads to the governor of the state on the return of peace in the state.

The revised curfew will now be from 6PM to 6AM in Sokoto township.

The curfew was imposed as a result of the violent protest that trailed the arrest of suspects linked to the murder of Deborah Samuel.

Deborah, a 200L student of the Shehu Shagari College of Education, was lynched and burnt to death by an angry mob on Thursday after being accused of blasphemy.

The situation drew condemnation from many, including the Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar and the Catholic Bishop of Sokoto, Bishop Matthew Kukah.

President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered a probe into the incident.

In a swift reaction, the police authorities arrested two suspects linked to the murder, saying they had begun a manhunt for other suspects who appeared in footage of the gruesome murder which trended on social media.

In a statement the Governor cautions people to maintain peace and any breach of law and order will not be condoned in the State.

FRCN Abuja/ Titilayo Kupoliyi

News

We have left everything to God – Deborah’s Parents

By Web News 877

The parents of slain Sokoto student, Deborah Samuel, have revealed that they have handed everything over to God.

Emmanuel Garba and Alheri Emmanuel said, “We can’t say or do anything, except to take it easy as an act of God. We have left all to God, we have decided to take it like that.”

Emmanuel Garba, Deborah’s father, on Sunday, said he paid N120,000 to transport the remains of his daughter from Sokoto State to Niger State.

Garba, who said he would not seek any legal redress, disclosed that the government had not contacted him despite the gruesome killing of her daughter.

He stated, “I have yet to get a call or message from anyone concerning the incident. Nobody called me; I decided to go on my own. I went to the state CID (Criminal Investigation Department) office and begged them to help me get the corpse so I could bury it because leaving it there might make it decompose. Then they took me to the mortuary, did some paperwork and released the remains to me.”

“I was the one who paid to transport the remains. I was charged N120,000 which I was forced to pay because that was the cheapest I got as the majority of people don’t like transporting corpses.”Garba, a security guard with the Niger State Water and Sanitation, said his wife had fallen ill, adding that she had just finished receiving injections.

He also stated, “We are not seeking redress in any court over the killing of our daughter. We are firm believers in Christ who always leave everything in the hands of God. No vengeance, nothing. Everything is left to our creator.“We don’t want anything (from the government) but it is just unfortunate that we used all our resources to send her to school and now she is dead. She was my eldest child and I have seven others left.”

Her mother, Alheri Emmanuel, who broke down in tears, said, “I have no demands; I don’t want anything but one thing I know is that my children will never go to school again.”

The deceased was buried on Saturday in her hometown in Niger State.

Punch/Olaolu Fawole

Security

Blasphemy: Gov Tambuwal Declares 24hr Curfew in Sokoto

By Web News 428

Sokoto State Governor, Aminu Tambuwal on Saturday afternoon, declared a 24-hour curfew in Sokoto metropolis over a protest that had rocked the city.
 
The Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the governor, Muhammad Bello, said the decision was “in pursuance of peace and order in Sokoto metropolis and the entire state.”

Palpable fear enveloped Sokoto metropolis on Saturday as protesters in their hundreds trooped into the streets to express their displeasure over the detention of two suspects arrested by the Police over the killing of Deborah Samuel, a 200-level Home Economics student of Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto, over alleged blasphemy.
 
Major streets such as Ahmadu Bello Way, Kano Road, where banks are located and Emir Yahaya Road, in the early hours of the day, were deserted with business places and shops closed.
 
However, attempts by the protesters to attack the Palace of the Sultan of Sokoto, His Eminence Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, were resisted by security men on the ground.
 
The grouse of the protesters was Sultan Abubakar’s condemnation of the dastard killing of the late Deborah Samuel.
 
Unperturbed by the presence of security personnel in some strategic areas within the state capital, the protesters also stormed Ahmadu Bello Way church line, where Catholic, Anglican, Baptist, ECWA and C&S churches are located.
 
Attempts by the protesters to set the St. Mary Catholic Church ablaze were also resisted by armed security personnel drafted to the area, who fired several canisters of teargas to disperse the irate protesters.
 
The protesters, however, succeeded in burning down a car around St. Mary Catholic Church.

Radio Nigeria reports that the situation is calmed while police are moving around to ensure members of the public adhere to the curfew order.

Nasir Malali/ Abdullahi Lamino

 

Crime

Sokoto Student Killing: President Buhari Condemns Action, Calls for Calm

By Web News 611

The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.) has condemned the lynching of Deborah Samuel which occurred in Sokoto State on Thursday.

Samuel was a Christian 200-level student of Shehu Shagari College of Education Sokoto, who was killed for allegedly blaspheming Prophet Muhammad.

In a statement released via the Presidency’s official Twitter account on Friday, the President decried the mob action and ordered a probe into the incident.

The press release read in part, “President @MBuhari strongly condemns the resort to self-help by the mob in Sokoto, resulting in violence, destruction and killing of a second year student of Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto, Deborah Samuel, following an allegation that she had blasphemed Muhammad (SAW), the Prophet of Islam on Thursday.

“President Buhari said the news of the killing of the young lady by fellow students was a matter of concern and demanded an impartial, extensive probe into all that happened before and during the incident.”

In his own words, “No person has the right to take the law in his or her own hands in this country. Violence has and never will solve any problem.”

He also directed the Ministries of Information and Culture, Police Affairs, Communications and Digital Economy to collaborate with GSM providers and Tech companies in order to contain the spread of false and inflammatory information through social media.

The statement noted, “The President extended the nation’s condolences to the family of the deceased student, and wished all those injured a quick recovery.

“He commended the immediate response to the incident by the Sokoto State Government, and urged religious and community leaders to call citizens’ attention to the need to exercise the right to freedom of speech responsibly.

“President Buhari called for tempered comments by the media and calm among the general population while investigation is ongoing to find out the remote and immediate causes of the incident.”

As earlier reported, Deborah, a 200 Level student of Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto, was beaten and burnt to death by colleagues on Thursday.

The deceased was accused of blasphemy by her classmates, and all attempts to protect her by the school security proved futile.

Later on Thursday, the Sokoto State Police Command announced that it had arrested two suspects connected to the incident.

Punch/ Titilayo Kupoliyi