A Minna Chief Magistrate’s Court 1 has arrested and detained Alhaji Mohammed Shaba Aliyu, the District Head of Mokwa, in a Correctional Centre.
The monarch is accused of firing at protesting youths in his domain, killing one Jiya Mohammed and injuring several others.
The royal father is accused of committing the crime under Section 221 of the Penal Code, according to the case’s First Information Report (FIR).
On May 11, 2022, the youth were reportedly protesting the kidnapping of one Kudu Tswacha from a nearby school when the traditional ruler pulled out his single-barrel gun and began firing randomly at the crowd.
“Several youths sustained bullet injuries in the process,” according to the FIR, “and as a result, one Jiya Mohammed suffered serious inquiries and was rushed to the Mokwa General Hospital for treatment, where he later died.”
The suspect “is standing trial on culpable homicide, an offence which contravened Section 221 of the Penal Code, punishable by death,” according to the police prosecutor, Inspector Aliyu Yakubu Kuta.
However, Hajiya Hauwa Kulu Isah, the presiding Chief Magistrate, refused to accept his plea, claiming that her court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case.
She instructed the prosecutor to send the case file to the office of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) in the state Ministry of Justice’s Attorney General’s office for legal advice.
She then put the case on hold until the legal advice was received.
