Yusuf Saidu Danbaba V. The State (2018)

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OLUKAYODE ARIWOOLA, J.S.C.

This is an appeal against the judgment of the Court of Appeal, Sokoto Divison; Coram: Paul Adamu Galinje, JCA (as he then was);

Tunde O. Awotoye, JCA and M. L. Shuaib, JCA, delivered on the 6th day of November, 2014 in appeal No.CA/S/64c/2012. In the said judgment, the Court of Appeal, (hereinafter referred to as “Court below”) had affirmed the decision of the Sokoto High Court, sitting in Sokoto, Coram: A.M.. Lamido, J. (herein after referred to as the “trial Court”) wherein the appellant and other co-accused were discharged and acquitted of the offence of conspiracy to commit culpable homicide but convicted and sentenced the appellant for the offence of culpable homicide punishable with death.

The gist of the case goes thus: The appellant claimed to be a muslim of the Shiite sect who used to go to a place called Marka, in Takakume village, Goronyo Local Government Area of Sokoto State where Shia muslims usually preach.

On 9th February, 2008 the appellant had observed the congregational Ishai (evening) prayer, led by the deceased, at the Takakume village mosque,

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Takakume. The Imam (deceased) was said to be of Kadiriyya sect. After the said evening prayer, the deceased left the mosque and sat in front of one Abdullahi’s Chemist shop. There, the appellant, who claimed to be in company of one Isha Gajere, attacked the Imam with cutlass and left him unconscious in the pool of his blood.

After seeing the deceased fell down, the appellant ran to his house with his blood soaked cutlass, hid it somewhere in the house and ran away from the village. He was later arrested when on the third night he had sneaked into the village.

The appellant was later arraigned before the trial Court, along with other persons charged with conspiracy to commit culpable homicide and homicide punishable with death, contrary to Sections 97 and 221(a) of the Penal Code, on 11th February, 2010. Appellant pleaded not guilty. Prosecution called eight (8) witnesses and tendered couple of documents and materials including two confessional statements of the appellant in evidence. At the end of the trial and in a reserved judgment, the trial Court acquitted and discharged the appellant from the charge of conspiracy to commit homicide contrary to

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Section 97 of the Penal Code but found him guilty of the offence of culpable homicide, punishable with death, contrary to Section 221(a) of the same Penal Code. He was then convicted and sentenced to death by hanging.

Dissatisfied with the judgment of the trial Court, the appellant had appealed to the Court below which dismissed the appeal. That has led to his further appeal to this Court upon five (5) Grounds of Appeal.

Upon service of the record of appeal, and pursuant to the Rules of this Court, briefs of argument were filed and exchanged. The appellant’s brief of argument settled by Boma Ozobia Esq. on 8/2/2016 was deemed properly filed and served on 20/9/2017. The respondent’s brief of argument was later filed on 17/10/2017 by Paul Kasim, Esq.

In the appellant’s brief of argument, the following two issues were distilled from the five grounds of appeal earlier filed by the appellant.