Suspect confesses how victim was eliminated
President Muhammadu Buhari and the governor of Kano State, Mr. Abdullahi Ganduje have sympathised with the family of five-year-old Hanifa Abubakar, who was abducted and murdered by her teacher in Kwanar Dakata, Nassarawa local government area of the state.
The teacher, Abdulmalik Tanko, who is also the proprietor of the school (Noble Kids Academy), allegedly collected ransom from the child’s parents but killed her later and disposed of her remains in a shallow grave on the school’s premises.
She was abducted last November last year but her corpse was discovered last Thursday by security agents.
Buhari, in a condolence message issued by his media aide, Mr. Garba Shehu, applauded police and the DSS operatives for unraveling the mystery behind Hanifa’s disappearance particularly for the arrest of her teacher and his other accomplices suspected of the child’s kidnap and murder.
The president said the family and the whole nation, which followed up on Hanifa’s travail every day since her disappearance, were hoping for the girl to have been rescued alive and well.
He added that the thorough and painstaking detective operation by law enforcement bodies, leading to the discovery of the corpse and the arrest of the suspects, who had already made confessions, was commendable.
“When breakthroughs like this happen, people will talk differently of law enforcement,” Buhari said and prayed for the repose of the soul of the little school girl and urged her parents to bear the sad loss with courage and fortitude in God.
The president urged the police and the Kano State ministry of justice to uphold the integrity of the detective work that busted the case by preparing well and presenting a good case that would earn the respect of the court.
Similarly, Ganduje assured that the government would continue to meticulously monitor and ensure the prosecution of anyone found culpable in Hanifa’s kidnap and murder.
The governor in a statement issued by the state’s commissioner for information, Mr. Muhammad Garba, said steps had already been taken in the matter, including the indefinite closure and withdrawal of the operating license of the school where the child was allegedly murdered.
He said the state government was terribly disturbed that the people entrusted with the care of the child turned out to be her murderers.
The governor added that the government had been in touch with the family of the child and would remain so until justice prevailed in the case to serve as a deterrent to others.
Ganduje commended security agencies in the state for the prompt action that led to the arrest of those allegedly involved.
“While investigation is ongoing, the government will meticulously follow the case to its logical conclusion,” he said.
Besides, the governor commended the international community, human rights-based organisations and well-meaning Nigerians for their concern in the matter.
Meanwhile, Tanko said he killed his pupil with a N100 rat poison.
Speaking at the headquarters of the Kano State Police Command yesterday Tanko said: “I picked her inside Keke NAPEP and I carried her to my own house where I lied to my wife that the girl was a daughter to one of the women working in my school and that the mother travelled and pleaded for us to keep the girl for some days. My wife accepted and kept the girl for that reason.
“I realised that the girl’s parents were informed that when picking her up, she made mention of ‘uncle’. This gave me the impression that they might be suspecting me as the uncle.
“Then after some time, after some days, some of my teachers visited my house very early in the morning and when they came, I was also suspecting that they were sent over to the house to find out whether the girl was there with me.
“So, I decided that it was better I found a way before I would be caught. I first thought of sending this girl to another state but again, I thought the whole town was aware that she was missing. If the girl was going to be sent out through the main roads, we would be caught. So, that was when I conceived the idea of killing her.
“I picked her up at home; she was already sleeping, it was getting to 11pm. I picked her up… I used to always drink tea… I was drinking tea at that time, so I put the remaining tea in an empty container of Bobo yogurt and then I poured in this rat killer poison inside and gave it to the girl, not in my own house.
“When we went to the other school, when we were passing, I told her that I was taking her back to her uncle’s house. So, as we were going, I gave her the drink on the road and she drank it and then we entered one branch of the school; the branches are two. We entered the other branch with her and I told her I was going to pick something inside. She entered and that was where she finally died.
“I bought the poison N100. I buried her in the school. Let me clear this doubt. People are thinking that it has to do with ritual, this is not rituals. I buried her inside the school simply because I was not able to find any secure place to dig a hole.”
