A Tamale High Court presided over by Justice Jerome Noble-Nkrumah on Thursday convicted a 24 year old baker Abubakari Iddrisu to death by hanging for killing an 8 year old child and injuring two others at Gumbihini a suburb of the Tamale Metropolis in March 2010.
The seven (7) member jury in the case unanimously found the accused guilty of murder, using offensive weapon and causing harm in the case that has been pending before the court.
The accused pleas for mercy were ignored by the trial judge who went ahead and passed judgment praying to God to have mercy on his soul.
According to the facts of the case as presented to the court, the accused on March 16, 2010 slaughtered the three children while they were fast asleep. Two of the kids were lucky to have survived the sharp cutlass of the suspect while 8 year old Mustapha Abdul Jahir died immediately after he was rushed to the Tamale Teaching Hospital for medical attention.
Mustapha Mohammed 9 and Mustapha Aliu 7 who were in critical condition were later treated and discharged while a post mortem report revealed the deceased died of cutlass wounds.
The suspect a younger brother of the father of the victims’ lives in the same house and was reported to have constantly accused the school children of pilfering with his money in the room.
He was alleged to have cautioned the kids over the conduct but this was constantly defied until the dawn of the said day when the suspect got infuriated and slaughtered the victims while they were asleep with their mother Zenabu Mustapha in the compound.
The mother alarmed over the unusual noise sprang up from the mat only to find out that she was lying in the pool of blood being the bleeding of the kids and raised an alarm which saw the suspect flee.
Madam Zenabu unable to stand the pain also collapsed and was rushed to the hospital together with the victims were one was pronounced dead on arrival.
Abubakari Iddrisu after the incident tried fleeing the community completely but was pursued and arrested by the youth who but for the intervention of some elders were charged to lynch him.
He was handed over to the police and arraigned before court on charges of murder, causing harm and use of offensive weapons.
Abubakari Iddrisu while in detention expressed regrets over his actions and prayed with his family to temper justice with mercy promising to make up what had been lost through his conduct. The court after a full trial found him guilty of all counts and sentenced him accordingly. No relation was in court as the accused was immediately whisked away by prison officers to be hanged depending on when the president of the republic appends his signature.
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