The convicts were identified as Gaji Hassan, Abdullahi Goni Gudusu and Modu Bukar.
In a judgment delivered on Thursday, October 22, 2026, in Suit No. SS/78C/2026, The State vs Gaji Hassan and 2 Others, Justice Kabiru Muhammad convicted the defendants on all three counts.
According to a statement by the court’s Public Relations Officer, Nakwanta Muhammad Garba, the incident occurred at about 4:30 p.m. on September 19, 2024, in Kagara village, Goronyo Local Government Area of Sokoto State.
The court heard that the defendants, who were armed with rifles, intercepted Babangida Nasiru and a female companion before taking them into the bush.
They allegedly robbed Nasiru of N260,000 and kept him in their custody. He was later found dead with gunshot wounds to his chest and neck.
During the trial, the prosecution called two witnesses. The judge described the surviving eyewitness’s testimony as credible and unshaken.
The court dismissed the defendants’ claim that they had released the deceased, ruling that they failed to provide a satisfactory explanation for his death under the legal principle of “last seen.”
Justice Muhammad also held that the defendants’ confessional statements were voluntary and admissible in evidence, noting that their allegations of torture were not substantiated.
The judge further ruled that the testimony of the surviving eyewitness was sufficient to establish the defendants’ guilt.
Citing the mandatory punishment prescribed under the Sokoto State Penal Code Law, 2019, the court sentenced each of the three convicts to death by hanging.
However, Justice Muhammad informed the defendants of their right to appeal the judgment before the Court of Appeal within 90 days.
