A Sharia Court in Fagge 'Yan Alluna area of Kano State has sentenced a young man to 60 strokes of the cane after finding him guilty of stealing a ram intended for Eid al-Adha sacrifice.
The convict, Ahmad Sa'id Dandinshe, was charged with criminal trespass and theft after stealing a ram belonging to one Maryam Hamza, a resident of Dabai area in Gwale Local Government Area.
During the court proceedings, prosecution counsel Barrister Zaharaddin Mustafa informed the court that the accused had committed offenses that contravene provisions of the Kano State Sharia Penal Code. When the charges were read to him, Ahmad pleaded guilty to both counts.
Presiding judge, Ustaz Umar Lawan Abubakar, subsequently handed down a sentence that included options of imprisonment or fines, in addition to corporal punishment. For the crime of criminal trespass, Ahmad received a sentence of six months imprisonment or a fine of ₦15,000, plus 30 strokes of the cane. For the theft charge, he received an identical sentence of six months imprisonment or a ₦15,000 fine, with an additional 30 strokes.
According to court reports, the caning punishment was carried out immediately within the court premises.
The case highlights the continued application of Sharia law in northern Nigerian states, where Islamic legal codes operate alongside the country's secular legal system. Kano State, which has one of the most established Sharia legal systems in Nigeria, implements these laws particularly in cases involving theft, moral offenses, and other crimes specified under the Sharia Penal Code.
