Kano court remands three over alleged kidnap, murder of four-year-old boy

A Kano State High Court has remanded three defendants in a custodial facility over allegations of criminal conspiracy, kidnapping, and the murder of a four-year-old boy, Aliyu Haruna Haidar.

The defendants, Hajara Sani, Ayatullahi Armaya’u, and Jibrin Ado, all residents of Gobirawa village in Rano Local Government Area of Kano State, were arraigned on a three-count charge.

The charges, filed under Sections 97(1), 273, and 221(a) of the Penal Code, Laws of Kano State, relate to alleged criminal conspiracy, kidnapping, and culpable homicide punishable by death.

The defendants pleaded not guilty to all the charges when they were read to them.

Following their arraignment, the court ordered their remand in a custodial facility and adjourned the case until December 4, 2026, for the commencement of hearing and the presentation of prosecution witnesses.

According to the charge sheet, marked K/184/2024, the alleged incident occurred at about 9 a.m. on April 9, 2024, in Gobirawa village, Rano Local Government Area.

The prosecution alleged that Hajara Sani conspired with the two other defendants to abduct the four-year-old boy and detain him in a house for two days while demanding a ransom of N2 million from his family.

The prosecution further alleged that negotiations subsequently reduced the ransom demand to N1 million.

However, according to the summary of evidence, the defendants allegedly strangled the child before the ransom payment was completed.

The prosecution’s account attributed the alleged killing partly to delays in the payment of the ransom and the fact that the child reportedly recognised one of his alleged captors.

The prosecution team is led by Lamido Abba Soron Dinki, alongside Iliyasu Ibrahim.

Meanwhile, counsel to the first defendant, Hajara Sani, Bashiru Ibrahim, has dismissed reports suggesting that his client worked as domestic staff in the victim’s household.

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Speaking to NigerianSketch, Ibrahim, who appeared alongside Alhaji Ibrahim, Esq., said the claim was unsupported by the official charge sheet filed before the court.

He maintained that any suggestion that his client was employed as domestic staff in the victim’s family home was extraneous to the charges before the court.

The prosecution is expected to present witnesses and exhibits in support of its case when the hearing begins.

The allegations have yet to be proven in court.