Tanko, the proprietor of Noble School, will know on July 28 whether he would be dying by hanging for the alleged murder of the five-year-old.
The Kano State High Court presided over by Justice Usman Naabba has fixed July 28 for judgment in the case against Abdulmalik Tanko and two others over the alleged kidnap, torture and murder of a five-year-old pupil, Hanifa Abubakar.
The case resumed on Tuesday for adoption of final written addresses of both defence and prosecution counsel.
Addressing the court, the defence counsel from Legal Aid Council of Nigeria (LACON), Barrister Hasiya Imam told the court that the defence filed its final written address, dated May 31.
“My Lord we seek to adapt our final written address as our oral argument and urge the court to consider all our submissions and discharge all the 3 defendants,” Imam prayed.
Also in his address, Kano State Counsel, Barrister Lamido Abba Soron Dinki, said after receiving the final written address from the defense legal team, the prosecution filed its own address dated June 6, and prayed the court to adopt it as their final argument in the trial and convict the three defendants.
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However, making adumbration before the court, Soron Dinki prayed the court to take cognisant of the 2nd defendant’s confessional statement.
“My Lord, the 2nd defendant knew that the victim died and he was given money to bury her,” he said.
The counsel told the court that Hashimu is standing trial under Section 277 of the penal code, which is the concealment of the kidnapped person.
“Section 277 of penal code carries same punishment of death sentence with section 275 paragraph (b), we pray the court to uphold death sentence against Isiyaku.”
Soron dinki urged the court in evaluating its judgment to uphold the provision of Section 277 with that of Section 275 of the penal code law by sentencing Isiyaku to death.
Backstory
Hanifa Abubakar was a pupil of Noble Kids Nursery and Primary School in Kano where the proprietor of the school, Abdulmalik Tanko, allegedly abducted her and killed her with a rat poison.
Hanifa was then buried by her assailant in the Noble Kids Nursery and Primary School premises in Kawana, Kano State.
Tanko confessed that he killed Hanifa Abubakar to cover his track after collecting ransom from her parents
While being paraded, Tanko confessed to placing N100 worth of rat poison into a drink he gave Hanifa and then watched her die. He thereafter buried her inside his school compound.
In his confessional video, Tanko dismissed claims that he killed Hanifa for ritual purposes. According to him, he buried her on his school premises because he couldn’t find another secure place to bury her.
He said he abducted Hanifa and demanded ransom from her parents because he was going through financial crisis.
”I just want to plead with the parents. I am so sorry for what I did to them. I have killed their daughter so I am very sorry. This is a life, a life is something precious.”