CORAM

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PARTIES

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1. SENATOR KABIRU GARBA MARAFA 2. ALH SIRAJO GARBA3. ALH MUHAMMAD JIMA4. YAKUBU MUKHTAR5. BELLO ABUABAKAR6. ZUBAIRU MUSA B.7. ALH HAMZA TUKUR8. AUWALU ALHAZAI9. NASIRU MOHAMMED FARU10. HON ALH SALISU AMINU11. SA’IDU BARE BARI12. UMAR HASHIMU13. ALH SANI GOBIRAWA14. ALH SANI GYARE KADAURI15. ALH MUSA SAMARU16. ALH ABDULLAHI NAHUCE17. BASHAR ABDULLAHI18. ADAMU RABIU TSIKAU19. SHAFI’I MUSA20. ABUBAKAR UMAR21. MOHAMMED SANI22. BUHARI ABDULLAHI23. JUNAIDU MOHAMMED24. AMINU ABUBAKAR WUYA25. AHMAD S/ASKI26. YUSUF BABAN RAGO27. SARKI NA YALWA28. ZAYYANU DAHIRU29. LAWAL DAN MALIKI30. BELLO SHEHU31. DAN MALIKI32. UMMARU BUZU33. AISHA BALA34. UMAR SHUAIBU35. DAN JA’O RINI36. LAWALI MOHAMMAD YARGEDA37. SHUGABA DA AIKI38. ALH HAMISU MAI AIKI39. MURTAL A. MANDE40. MAMUDA SADA41. ALH HASSAN ABDULLAHI42. ALH BELLO MAI YARMAKA43. ABUABAKAR KOKARI44. ALH BELLO D/UMMA45. ALH IBRAHIM IMAM46. ALH IBRAHIM47. SHEHU UMAR48. MUSA DOGO49. SANI BATURE50. HASSAN GARBA ZUBU51. JABIR UMAR52. SHAHU TAJA53. MALAMI SULAIMAN54. ABUBAKAR BAWA55. SANI BATURE56. ABUBAKAR MUH’D57. ALH SANAMILA M GIDA58. SANI A DAHIRU59. SANI BALA SANKALAWA60. ALH AMINU KURAR MOTA61. ALH DANYABO WAZOJI62. UMARU ABDULLAHI63. ALH ISAH MAIDAJI64. ABUBAKAR AHMAD JAURI65. GARBA SARKIN RUWA66. MUSA LABBO GAMO67. AUWALI ALIYU68. BELLO IBRAHIM69. SAYYADI ABUBAKAR70. BELLO USMAN71. YUNUSA USMAN72. BELLO S/YAMMA73. DAHIRU ABDULLAHI74. RABIU HAMZA75. SHEHU HALIDU76. MUSA LUMU GYALANGE77. ALH ISAH DAN LARABAWA78. ALH LAWALI JIKA79. ABDUL’AZIZ BARAU MALAM ZA80. USMAN MUHAMMAD ALTINE81. SURAJO MUHAMMAD82. KHALID BUHARI83. ANAS ABUBAKAR84. RABI’I SHUGABA85. JAMILU MUHAMMAD86. BALA SABO87. YUSUF ADAMU88. MALLAM FALALU MATOYA89. ALIYU MUH’D S/GARI90. SULAIMAN BALA91. BELLO BARAU92. SANI DAN ABU93. ALIYU S/FAWA94. DAHIRU HALILU95. ATTO USUMAN96. SALISU SAMAILA97. UMARU MALLAN MAGAMI98. DAHIRU ZAKARI99. BASHAR MOHAMMED100. SALE MOH’D DANBA’U101. LAWALI DAN MAIGORO102. MAL. IDRIS MUSA103. ABUBAKAR ‘YARRUWA104. TUKUR LUNGUFARU105. ALIYU MAI MAI106. HASSAN AHMAD107. YUNUSA ABDULLAHI108. ALH IBRAHIM NA KATSALLE 109. ATTAHIRU RABIU110. SAHABI DANDA111. ABDULLAHI USMAN 112. SAMAILA SANI BINGI 113. ALH DANJUMMA MAFI 114. ALH SADO GARBA 115. LAWALI BALA 116. ALH SHEHU ABI 117. MANU NA TA’ALA 118. GADO MAI MODI119. ABDURRAHMAN SHINGE 120. WAKKALA KARINGUGA 121. ANARUWANATA KWAIRE 122. SURAJO AHMAD123. YA’U NAMA124. ALH SADIKU KATURU 125. AKILU SULAIMAN 126. ALH ISAH BAKAWI 127. ALH GARBA DAN ILA 128. RABIU IBRAHIM129. SANI MUSA130. ALH GARBA WANKE131. SARKIN PAWA DAN ABU 132. ALH MAMMAN NA’ISA 133. ALH SAHABI KILLUTU 134. BARA’U ALIYU135. MAL DAYYABU ALARAMA136. ALH ABDULKADIR LIMAN137. ALH ABDULSALAM ABUBAKAR 138. ALIYU SAYYADI139. SULE MUHAMMAD 140. AMADU SARKIN(For themselves and all other aspirants/candidates who paid prescribed fees for procurement of Nomination forms for purpose of contesting the 1st Defendant’s 147 Nos. Ward Executive Committee, 14 Nos. Local Government Executive Committees and State Executive Committee Election held on 5th, 12th and 19th June 2018 in Zamfara State, but were wrongly excluded or prevented from participating by voting or being voted for) APPELLANTS

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1. SANUSI LIMAN DAN ALHAJI 2. ALHAJI BABANGIDA ABDULLAHI3. KABIRU MANDE CHAFE, CHAIRMAN APC TSAFE L. G (Suing for themselves and on behalf of all State APC Members)4. MUKHTAR SHEHU IDRISS5. HON. IKIRA ALIYU BILBIS6. HON. TIJJANI YAHAYA KAURA7. HON. ABDUL-AZIZ YARI ABUBAKAR8. HON. SANUSI GARBA RIKIJI9. HON. ABDULMALIK ZUBAIRU10. HON. HUSSAINI ABUBAKAR MORIKI11. HON. IBRAHIM MUH’D B/MAGAJI12. HON. MUTTAKA MUH’D RINI13. HON. AHMAD SHARU ANKA14. HON. UMARU JIBO BUKKUYUM15. HON. MUSTAPHA GADO ANKA16. HON. MUH’D SANI AHMAD SANI17. HON. KABIRU MOYI B/MAGAJI18. HON. YAHAYA JIBRIL BUKKUYUM19. HON. TUKUR MUH’D DANTASAWA20. HON. IBRAHIM MUH’D K/KOSHI21. HON. YAKUBU IBRAHIM NABATURE22. HON. ALIYU MUH’D GAYERI23. HON. ALIYU MUH’D FALALE24. HON. SANUSI MUH’D LIMAN25. HON. DALHATU MAHMED MAGAMI26. HON. LAWAL M. LIMAN27. HON. ABUBAKAR IDRIS KURYA28. HON. YAHAYA SHAHU MARADUN29. HON. YAHAYA ABDULLAHI GORA30. HON. HARUNA ABDULLAHI D/SADAU31. HON. IBRAHIM ABU MARU32. HON. SHEHU BELLO MAI WURNO33. HON. ALYU ANGO KAGARA34. HON. ISAH ABDULMUMINU35. HON. ALIYU ABUBAKAR MC36. HON. ALIYU ABUBAKAR DANJIBGA37. HON. MANIR ALIYU G/JAJA38. HON. YUSUF AHMAD MORIKI39. ALL PROGRESSIVES CONGRESS (APC)40. INUWA ABDULKADIR, 1ST NATIONAL VICE CHAIRMAN NORTH WEST ZONE OF APC41. INDEPENDENT NATIONAL ELECTORAL COMMISSION (INEC)42. HON. SANI AJI RESPONDENTS

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AREA(S) OF LAW

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SUMMARY OF FACTS

The facts of the case alleged by the Respondent are that the Appellant and two of his friends went for hunting. On reaching the bush, each of them went their separate directions. The following day, at about 6.45pm when the Appellant went for hunting, the Appellant saw something moving like a pig. Then the Appellant shot in that direction not knowing that it was his friend with whom they went hunting. Upon the death of his friend, the Appellant returned home and was afraid to report to the police until he was arrested by the police at Toungo. However, the Appellant in his defence alleged that he was sitting in his house when the police came to arrest him and took him to Toungo police station and locked him up there. He further alleged that when he asked the police the offence that he committed, the police told him that he killed somebody. The Appellant told the police that he did not go for hunting not to talk of killing someone. The Appellant was tried, convicted for the offence of culpable homicide contrary to section 221 (b) of the Penal code and sentenced to death by hanging in the High Court of Adamawa State. Dissatisfied with the judgment of the trial court, the Appellant has appealed to the Court of Appeal on the grounds that the trial court was wrong when it stated that the Appellant did not raise timeously his defence of alibi and thereby refused to consider the Appellant’s alibi even though same was neither investigated nor disproved by the Respondent.

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HELD

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Appeal Allowed

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ISSUES

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Was the Trial Court not wrong when it found that the Appellant did not raise timeously his defence of alibi, and thereby refused and failed to consider the Appellant’s alibi, even though same was neither investigated nor disproved by the Respondent? Was the Trial Court correct when it held that the Respondent proved against the Appellant beyond reasonable doubt the offence of Culpable Homicide punishable with death, convicted and sentenced the Appellant to death?

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RATIONES DECIDENDI

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BURDEN OF PROOF – WHETHER THE BURDEN OF PROOF ON THE PROSECUTION TO PROVE THE GUILT OF AN ACCUSED PERSON SHIFTS

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“It is the law that in a criminal trial, the burden of proof lies upon the prosecution, throughout, to prove the guilt of the accused person and the burden never shifts. Even where the accused person in his statement to the police admitted committing the offence, the prosecution is not relieved of the burden so that a wrong person will not be convicted for an offence he never committed. Failure to discharge this burden renders the benefit of the doubt in favour of the accused person.”

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GUILT OF AN ACCUSED PERSON – WAYS OF PROVING THE GUILT OF AN ACCUSED PERSON

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“The onus is on the prosecution to prove the guilt of the accused beyond reasonable doubt.
The guilt of the accused person can be proved by:
The confessional statement of the accused person; or
Circumstantial evidence; or
Evidence of eye witness of the crime.
See People of Lagos State vs. Umaru (2014) 3 SCNJ 114 at 137, Agabele vs. The State (2006) 6 NWLR (Pt. 975) 100 and Kim vs. The State (1992) 4 NWLR (Pt. 233) 17.”

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OFFENCE OF CULPABLE HOMICIDE – INGREDIENTS OF THE OFFENCE OF CULPABLE HOMICIDE PUNISHABLE WITH DEATH THAT A PROSECUTION MUST PROVE

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“By virtue of Section 221 of the Penal Code, the prosecution must prove the following:
That a human being died;
That his death was caused by the accused person;
That the act of the accused that caused the death was done with the intention of causing death; or that the accused knew that death would be the probable consequence of his act.
All these ingredients must be proved before a conviction is secured. Failure to establish any of the ingredients would result in an acquittal. See the decisions of this Court in Akpa vs. State (2007) 2 NWLR (Pt. 1019) 500, Uwagboe vs. The State (2007) 6 NWLR (Pt. 1031) 606 and the decision of the Supreme Court in Adava vs. State (2006) 9 NWLR (Pt. 984) 152.”

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ALIBI- MEANING OF ALIBI

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“Alibi is a defence which seeks to persuade the Court that the accused person could not possibly be at the scene of the crime as he was somewhere else. In raising the defence of alibi, the accused person must at the earliest opportunity furnish the police with full details of the alibi, to enable the police check the details. Failure of the accused person to furnish the particulars of the alibi weakens the defence. See Sowemimo vs. The State (2004) 11 NWLR (Pt. 885) 515.”

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CRIMINAL LAW AND PROCEDURE, LAW OF EVIDENCE, PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE

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CONFESSIONAL STATEMENT-DUTY OF COURT WHEN AN ACCUSED PERSON RETRACTS HIS CONFESSIONAL STATEMENT
“When an accused person confesses to a crime in his extra judicial statement but in Court retracts or takes back what he had said, the practice is that before such an accused person is convicted on the confessional statement the Court looks for some evidence outside the confession which would make the confession probable.”

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CONFESSIONAL STATEMENT- FACTORS TO BE CONSIDERED WHEN CONVICTING AN ACCUSED PERSON ON HIS CONFESSIONAL STATEMENT

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“Over the years the Courts have adopted the practice recommended in R V Sykes (1913) 8 CAR 233 of subjecting a confessional statement to some close examination before relying on it to convict an accused person. The factors to be considered are:
Whether there is anything outside the confession to show that it is true.
Whether it is corroborated
Are the relevant statements made in it true as far as they can be tested?
Was the accused person one who had the opportunity of committing the offence?
Is the confession possible?
Is it consistent with other facts which have been ascertained and proved?”

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CONFESSIONAL STATEMENT-DUTY OF COURT WHEN THERE IS NO OTHER EVIDENCE TO TEST AN ALLEGED CONFESSIONAL STATEMENT

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“PW1 was not an eye witness. He recorded the statement. That was all he did. I am not unmindful of his claim that he went to the scene of crime. This cannot be true because what he called a “single barrel” (whatever that means) that he purportedly recovered at the scene was not tendered in Court. There was therefore no other evidence before the Court below against which the confessional statement exhibit A could have been tested. See Bassey vs. The State (2012) 4 SCNJ 141 at 155 – 156 and F.R.N vs. Barminas (2017) 15 NWLR (Pt. 1588) 177 at 214 – 215.

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CASES CITED

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STATUTES REFERRED TO

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Penal code Laws of Adamawa State|

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