Appeal Court Upholds Death Penalty For a Woman Who Killed Ex-Husband in Kebbi

The Court of Appeal has upheld the death sentence handed down to Farida Abubakar for the killing of her former husband, Chief Magistrate Attahiru Muhammad-Ibrahim.

A three-member panel of the court, led by Justice Tunde Awotoye, dismissed Abubakar’s appeal in a unanimous judgment delivered on Monday in appeal No. CA/S/75C/2025. The panel affirmed the judgment of the Kebbi State High Court delivered on June 3, 2024.

The appellate court ruled that the conviction and sentence imposed by the trial court were proper and supported by credible and reliable evidence, describing the appeal as lacking merit.

Abubakar was prosecuted by Zainab Muhammad Jabbo of the Kebbi State Ministry of Justice, while her defence was led by A. N. Salau.

During the trial, the prosecution called twelve witnesses and tendered several exhibits, including Abubakar’s extrajudicial statement and circumstantial evidence linking her to the crime.

In its judgment, the Court of Appeal upheld the trial court’s reliance on the “last seen” doctrine, noting that the prosecution successfully proved its case beyond reasonable doubt. The court held that the totality of the evidence before the trial court sufficiently established Abubakar’s culpability.

The appellate court further ruled that all essential elements of the offences charged were established, even though Abubakar’s extrajudicial statements were not treated as confessional.

Consequently, the court affirmed her conviction and sentence of seven years’ imprisonment under Section 224(1) of the Kebbi State Penal Code for causing grievous hurt, as well as the death sentence by hanging under Section 191(b) of the same law.

Abubakar has since appealed the judgment to the Supreme Court, seeking to overturn the decision.