Crime & Court
Student to die by hanging for killing policeman
A court in Sudan on Sunday sentenced a university student to death after convicting him of killing a policeman during protests in the capital last year, a defence lawyer said.
Asim Omer, who was studying at Khartoum University, was arrested in December 2016 and charged with killing the policeman after hundreds of students clashed with security forces at the campus on the banks of the Blue Nile in April of that year.
Last month, the court found Omer guilty, and on Sunday sentenced him to be hanged.
“The judge sentenced Asim Omer to be hanged to death after finding him guilty of killing a policeman,” defence lawyer Mohamed Arabi told AFP, adding that he would appeal.
After sentencing, during which AFP was unable to gain access to the courtroom, police fired tear gas to disperse a protest by students gathered outside the court.
The protests relocated to areas in and around Khartoum University, with those demonstrations also dispersed by the same means.
The opposition Popular Congress Party, of which Omer is a member, rejected the court’s ruling.
“The sentencing of Asim Omer is illegal because the judge didn’t have full evidence to convict him,” the party said in a statement.
“We will continue our fight in the higher court and all alternatives are open to us to save his life.”
Students at Khartoum University demonstrated several times last year against an alleged plan to sell off buildings belonging to the institution.
The government denied the charge, and police often resorted to firing tear gas.
Sunday’s ruling “definitely affects the image of the country and the image of the judiciary”, said prominent human rights activist Mudawi Ibrahim Adam.
In late 2016, sporadic anti-government rallies were staged in Khartoum after the government raised fuel prices.
The demonstrations were swiftly broken up by security forces, and dozens of opposition leaders and activists like Ibrahim Adam were arrested.
Adam was released last month under a presidential pardon.
The bloodiest crackdown on protesters came in September 2013, when dozens of demonstrators were killed during anti-austerity rallies.
Thousands of people took to the streets of Khartoum and other regions calling for the downfall of President Omar al-Bashir’s regime, also after fuel subsidies were slashed.
Amnesty International said at the time that about 200 people were killed, hundreds wounded and more than 800 arrested. The government gave a toll of less than 100 dead.
Justice Maryanne Anenih of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory has issued a public summons for former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello to appear in court to respond to a fresh 16-count indictment.
The summons requires Bello to attend court on October 24 for his arraignment, alongside co-defendants Umar Oricha and Abdulsalami Hudu.
The public summons was ordered following an application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
In her ruling, Justice Anenih directed the EFCC to publish the summons in a widely circulated newspaper to ensure proper notification.
Also, the court instructed the EFCC to post copies of the public summons at Bello’s last known address and in conspicuous locations within the court premises.
The EFCC has reported difficulties in serving the charges, which were filed on September 24, alleging that Bello and the two co-defendants committed a criminal breach of trust involving a staggering ₦110.4 billion.
A Police Inspector, Mohammed Bulama, attached to the Police Mobile Force (PMF) 41 in Yobe State, has been arrested for allegedly killing a 39-year-old civilian, Abdulmalik Dauda, during a confrontation in Damaturu, the state capital.
The incident, which occurred on September 29, 2024, was sparked by a heated argument between Bulama and Dauda over “uncleared transactions” in the Zango area of Damaturu. The argument escalated, leading Bulama to fatally stab Dauda in the chest.
In a statement, the Yobe State Police spokesperson, Dungus Abdulkarim, confirmed Bulama’s arrest and announced that an investigation into the homicide case had been launched.
“The Commissioner of Police, CP Garba Ahmed, has ordered an immediate and thorough investigation into the incident involving Inspector Mohammed Bulama,” Abdulkarim said.
He further disclosed that the officer has been placed in custody, pending internal disciplinary action and prosecution.
CP Ahmed condemned the actions of the officer, extending his condolences to the family of the victim.
He also assured the public that justice would be served swiftly in accordance with the law.
The Lagos State Police Command has summoned three officers accused of extorting N1 million from members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) in the Surulere area of Lagos.
Footage of the incident, which went viral on social media late Friday, shows the officers confronting the corps members, reportedly over the absence of a physical copy of a driver’s license. The video was shared by social media user Oluyemi Fasipe, who claimed that the officers threatened the corps members with firearms and forcibly took them to the Kafaru Oluwole Tinubu House, the Area C Command of the Lagos State Police, where they allegedly extorted the sum of N1 million.
“Dear @BenHundeyin, Your officers today in Surulere extorted 1 million naira from three corps members,” Fasipe wrote on X (formerly Twitter). “They were threatened with firearms, kidnapped, and taken to the KAFARU OLUWOLE TINUBU HOUSE AREA C POLICE COMMAND of the @LagosPoliceNG where they were robbed.”
Fasipe added that the entire incident stemmed from the corps members’ inability to present a physical copy of a driver’s license, a situation he described as “evil.”
In one of the videos, the officers are seen inspecting the vehicle’s documents, with the situation escalating as additional officers arrived. One officer can be seen entering the car and demanding that the corps members stop recording the incident, while also prohibiting them from contacting their families.
In response, the spokesperson of the Lagos State Police Command, Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed that the officers involved have been summoned, and an investigation is underway.
“The men have been summoned, and their trial has commenced,” Hundeyin wrote on X. “We urge the complainants to visit the Complaint Response Unit at the State Headquarters to testify at the ongoing trial.”
-
News1 week agoBad Roads: ‘Focus on Message, Not Messenger’ – Nigerians Tell Works Minister, Umahi
-
Politics1 week ago
Oseni Salutes Senator Folarin’s Decades of Service at 61
-
News4 days ago
Rep Oseni Rallies Support for Ikogosi Development Projects, Calls for Resilience, Unity
-
Politics1 day ago
Oyo Rep, Oseni Pays APC Secretariat Staff Salaries, Donates N10m to Boost Party Operations
