A Kano State High Court has cleared one of three defendants prosecuted over the killing of seven members of a family in Dorayi Chiranci, while sentencing the other two to death.
Justice Nasiru Saminu, who delivered the ruling on Friday, found Isiyaku Abdul’azeez, popularly called Chebe, not guilty of the murder and conspiracy allegations after determining that the evidence presented by the prosecution did not establish his involvement, Channels Television reported.
The two other defendants were convicted on seven counts of culpable homicide over the January 17, 2026 incident involving Fatima Abubakar and her six children. They were sentenced to death by hanging and also handed life imprisonment with hard labour for armed robbery.
Kano State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Abdulkarim Kabir Maude, said the prosecution relied on evidence from eight witnesses and 30 exhibits to establish its case. He personally led the prosecution alongside Barrister Salisu Muhammad Tahir.
Maude said the state government was prepared to take the necessary steps towards implementing the death sentences if the convicts did not appeal within the legally prescribed period. He also praised the police and Ministry of Justice personnel involved in the case.
Although discharged in the present trial, Abdul’azeez remains a defendant in two other cases, according to the Attorney General, who said judgments in those matters were still pending.
The January attack claimed the lives of seven members of the Abubakar family, while the husband and father, Haruna Bashir, survived. J. I. Musa and A. I. Baba represented the defendants.
