A woman collapsed in court yesterday after her son was sentenced to death by hanging for the murder of a Kano business tycoon, philanthropist and Yoruba Leader.

Justice Kabiru Auta of a Kano High Court on Wednesday, June 22, sentenced Abubakar Abdulrahaman AKA Daddy to death by hanging for the murder of Chief Alh. Ganiyu Akanbi Bello.

The accused (28) was found guilty on a count charge of culpable homicide punishable with death and was discharged and acquitted in another charge of armed robbery.

According to The Nation, Abubakar was accused of murdering Chief Alh. Bello on June 5, 2014 in his residence on the night of the fateful day at the GRA Nassarawa opposite Kano Race Course when he stabbed the deceased in the heart with a kitchen knife.

“The prosecution led by Barr. M.M. Sulaiman of the State Ministry of Justice and assisted by the nominal complainant Counsel, J.I. Macaulay of Kehinde Olaitan Chamber called seven witnesses and tendered several exhibits. The exhibits included the knife used by him to stab chief Bello and the Blackberry handset of the deceased inside which he inserted his own SIM card which made the court to indict him as part of circumstantial evidence.

The accused lawyer, a Counsel from the Legal Aid Council, Barr. Adama in his plea, urged the court to temper justice with mercy because of his aged mother, wife and children.

Justice Auta in his final verdict said that the accused deserved no mercy having committed a capital offence by murdering a bread winner like him. He remarked that the accused showed no remorse throughout the trial and returned a verdict of hanging by the neck for the accused until pronounced dead.

Abubakar, who once worked at the deceased’s hotel, broke down in tears after the verdict. His mother collapsed in the open court.

“He has right of appeal within 30 days,” Justice Auta finally ruled.

Source: The Nation