The Kano State High Court has convicted and sentenced two men, Umar Auwal and Yakubu Dayyabu, to death by hanging for killing a housewife, Fatima Abubakar, and her six children in the Dorayi Chiranchi area of the state.
The presiding judge, Justice Nasiru Saminu of High Court No. 11, delivered the judgment on Friday after reviewing the evidence and testimonies presented during the trial.
The court found Auwal, popularly known as Breaker, and Dayyabu, also known as Wawo, guilty of killing Fatima and her six children on January 17, 2026.
The court consequently sentenced each of them to death by hanging.
“The brutal killing of the mother and her six children was a horrific crime that challenged the conscience of society,” Justice Saminu said. “How I wish there was a punishment heavier than this. My emphasis is not to administer vengeance but justice.”
The court also sentenced the two convicts to life imprisonment for conspiracy and armed robbery.
However, Justice Saminu discharged and acquitted the third defendant, Isiyaku Yakubu, of the conspiracy and murder charges.
The prosecution team was led by the Kano State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Abdulkarim Maude, alongside Salisu Tahir.
According to the Attorney-General, the judgment vindicated the prosecution’s position on the involvement of the two convicts in the killings and armed robbery.
Maude also declared the state government’s readiness to pursue the implementation of the death sentence if the convicts failed to exercise their right of appeal within the period provided by law.
He commended the police for what he described as a thorough investigation and praised officials of the Ministry of Justice for their role in securing the conviction.
On the acquitted defendant, Maude disclosed that although Isiyaku had been cleared in the present case, he was still facing two separate cases, with judgments expected later.
The defendants were represented by J. I. Musa and A. I. Baba.
Abubakar and her six children were murdered at their residence in Dorayi Chiranchi, Kano, in a case that sparked widespread public concern and condemnation.
