Operatives of Homicide section of the Niger State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (SCIID) of the Niger State Police Command, Minna, on Wednesday arraigned a Minna based housewife, Amina Aliyu along with three others before a Chief Magistrate Court in Minna over allegations of conspiracy and culpable homicide.
Amina who is nursing a three-week-old baby boy was arraigned alongside other accused persons, Aisha Mohammed, Zainab Aliyu and Fauziyya Rabi’u, who were alleged to have conspired among themselves to kill Amina’s co-wife, Fati Aliyu who was newly married as a second wife to her husband.
According to the Police First Information Report (FIR), Amina Aliyu and Fati Aliyu were both married to the same husband and reside on Mandela Road, Sauka-Kahuta area of Minna.
The charges read in part: “You, Amina Aliyu, left your apartment to the apartment of Fati Aliyu where you used your wooden pestle and without any provocation attacked and hit Fati Aliyu who was newly married on her head to which she sustained injury and fell down unconscious inside her kitchen floor; and you Amina Aliyu, A’isha Mohammed, Zainab Aliyu, and Fauziyya Rabi’u pulled her unconscious body to her parlour and set her body set ablaze as a result of which she later died.”
The prosecutor told the court that on the 23rd of March, 2021, one Bello Lawal of Gwari Motors, Bosso Road, Minna, had reported at Tudun Wada Police station that the four accused conspired among themselves and killed Fati Aliyu.
The two-count charges according to the Police prosecutor Ahmed Daudu Kwangoma, an Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) were punishable under section 97 and 221 of the penal code.
However, the court only read the charges to the accused persons and refused to take their plea on the ground that the court lacked jurisdiction to handle the trial.