A Gombe State High Court on Wednesday sentenced a 25-year-old man, Hassan Mohammed, to death by hanging for the murder of his former wife, Halimatu Sadiya-Adamu.
The judgment was delivered by Justice Abdulhamid Mohammed Yakubu of High Court No. 2 in Gombe, who found the defendant guilty of culpable homicide.
Mohammed, a resident of Falangaya village in Dukku Local Government Area, was accused of attacking the deceased with a knife after she reportedly declined his request to remarry him.
The prosecution told the court that the incident occurred on March 25, 2025, at about 1 p.m., and that the attack resulted in fatal injuries to the victim.
Leading the prosecution, the state Director of Public Prosecution, Abubakar Kungudo, informed the court that the offence was punishable under Section 221 of the Penal Code Law.
Kungudo explained that the prosecution presented six witnesses during the trial who testified on what they witnessed at the scene of the incident.
He also told the court that the knife allegedly used in carrying out the attack was tendered and admitted as an exhibit.
The defendant, however, pleaded not guilty when the charge was initially read to him.
During the trial, defence counsel Habib Alkali cross-examined the prosecution’s witnesses before presenting Mohammed as the only witness for the defence.
While giving his testimony, the defendant denied involvement in the killing but was later cross-examined by the prosecution.
Delivering judgment, Justice Mohammed Yakubu ruled that the prosecution had successfully established the case against the defendant beyond reasonable doubt.
The judge said that after reviewing the testimonies of witnesses, exhibits presented in court, the defendant’s confessional statement and findings from the police investigation, the court was convinced that the accused committed the offence.
He consequently convicted Mohammed of culpable homicide punishable under Section 221 of the Penal Code Law.
“The sentence of this court upon you, Hassan Mohammed, is death by hanging as stipulated under Section 221 of the Penal Code Law,” the judge declared.
The court held that the evidence presented established that the convict killed his former wife after she refused his request to remarry her.
