Lucky Obukohwo, Reporting
The Chief Magistrate of a court II in Tunga, Minna, Niger State has sentenced five heartless men nabbed with human skull to 60 years imprisonment with hard labour.
Each of the convicts will spend 12 years in prison for attempting to commit a money ritual with the skull.
Chief Magistrate Fati Umar Hassan, who gave the judgment, on Monday, found them guilty on a three-count charge which bordered on criminal conspiracy, trespass on the burial ground, and unlawful possession of a human skull.
The convicts are Ibrahim Jiya, Suleiman Usman, Abdullahi Usman, Idris Mohammed, and Isah Mohammed, all from Sakpe village of Edati Local government area of Niger State
Police prosecutor, Inspector Mua’azu Abdullahi, said the three count charges were punishable under sections 97,213 and 219 of the penal code law respectively.
He told the court that the suspects were arrested by the police in the Bida area command office after the case was reported and was later transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID) for thorough Investigation.
Abdullahi informed the court that they were caught with a bag containing a human skull and during the investigation, they confessed to the police that they met one (unknown herbalist) in Minna who directed them to produce a human skull to be used for money-making ritual so that they can become rich.
“They said the herbalist in turn informed and promised all of them that they would share the wealth from the said criminal activity and directed them to look for the human skull. They had to trespass inside the Muslim cemetery in Nasarafu village.
“They proceeded to dig a grave in the cemetery and dug up the human skull of one Late Yan Ndako Daniya who died three years ago and during the police Investigation you all confessed to the crime,” the prosecutor said.
When the three count charges were read to them by the presiding Chief Magistrate, Hassan, they all pleaded guilty to the charges.
The prosecutor Inspector Mua’azu Abdullahi however prayed the court to invoke the provision of section 157 of the criminal procedure code on them through a summary trial and convict them accordingly.
At the end, the Chief Magistrate, Hassan then sentenced each of them to 12 years on the three count charges with hard labor with no option of fine.