A High Court in Gombe on Friday sentenced five men to various prison terms for exhuming a corpse and stealing its eyes for alleged ritual purposes.
Justice Abdulsalam Mohammed of Court 8, delivered the judgment after the defendants pleaded guilty to some of the charges against them.
The convicted men are Mohammed Isah (also known as Chindo), Kawuni Sarki, Manu Saleh, Umar Jibrin (also known as Daddy), and Adamu Nasiru, all from Gadam village in Kwami Local Government Area. A sixth defendant, Abdullahi Umar Dauda, was also arraigned in connection with the case.
The prosecution, led by a state counsel, Ahmed Yakubu, told the court that the defendants faced a 10-count charge, including conspiracy, attempt to commit felony, causing indignity to a corpse, unlawful entry into a graveyard, theft, destruction of public property, membership of an unlawful society, use of unlawful charms, and unlawful possession of a human head.
Yakubu said the offences were committed on September 11, 2025, at the Gadam Muslim graveyard in Kwami Local Government Area.
He told the court that the defendants conspired with two other suspects, Aliyu Baka and Reuben, who were at large, to exhume the corpse of one Malam Manu Wanzam.
“They jointly exhumed the corpse of the late Malam Manu Wanzam, unwrapped the burial shroud, and removed the fresh corpse. The defendants then plucked the two eyes from the corpse,” the prosecutor said.
He added that one of the suspects who is still at large fled the scene with the plucked eyes, allegedly for ritual purposes.
The prosecutor also stated that the defendants attempted to exhume another corpse in the same cemetery on the same day.
He noted that the offences are punishable under Sections 96, 95, 218, 213, 286, 335, 306, 97A, 97B, 216, and 219 of the Penal Code Law.
During the proceedings, the defendants pleaded guilty to some of the charges after the court interpreter explained them.
Following their plea, the prosecution urged the court to summarily try them on the counts to which they admitted guilt, citing Sections 335(2) and 355(2) of the Gombe State Administration of Criminal Justice Law.
Delivering judgment, Justice Mohammed convicted and sentenced the defendants accordingly.
The court sentenced Mohammed Isah (Chindo), Kawuni Sarki, Manu Saleh, Umar Jibrin (Daddy), and Adamu Nasiru to six months imprisonment under Section 218 of the Penal Code.
They also received one-year sentences on additional counts. On the charge of theft, Isah, Sarki, and Nasiru were sentenced to two years each.
Justice Mohammed ordered that the sentences run consecutively.
Accordingly, Isah received a total of five years, Saleh (two years and six months), Jibrin (two years and six months), and Nasiru (four years and six months) imprisonment.
The court also ordered that the trial continue on the remaining counts against the defendants and adjourned the case to April 16, 2026, for continuation of hearing.