The Court of Appeal has upheld the death sentence imposed on Farida Abubakar for the murder of her former husband, Chief Magistrate Attahiru Muhammad-Ibrahim.
In a unanimous decision delivered on Monday, a three-man panel of the appellate court, led by Justice Tunde Awotoye, dismissed Abubakar’s appeal, ruling that it lacked merit.
The court affirmed the judgment of the Kebbi State High Court delivered on June 3, 2024.
The panel held that the conviction and sentence were firmly grounded in credible evidence adduced at trial, adding that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.
Abubakar was tried by the Kebbi State Government, with A. N. Salau appearing for the defence, while the prosecution was conducted by Zainab Muhammad Jabbo of the Kebbi State Ministry of Justice.
During the trial, the prosecution called 12 witnesses and tendered several exhibits, including the defendant’s extra-judicial statement and other circumstantial evidence linking her to the offence.
In its judgment, the Court of Appeal endorsed the trial court’s reliance on the doctrine of “last seen,” describing it as properly invoked and sufficiently supported by the evidence before the court.
Although Abubakar’s extra-judicial statements were not classified as confessional, the court held that all the essential ingredients of the offences charged were satisfactorily established.
The appellate court consequently affirmed Abubakar’s sentence to death by hanging under Section 191(b) of the Kebbi State Penal Code, as well as a seven-year jail term under Section 224(1) of the same law for causing grievous hurt.
It was learnt that Abubakar has since approached the Supreme Court, seeking to overturn the judgment.