Godwin Tsa, Abuja
An attempt by Maryam Sanda to wriggle out of the charge of killing her husband, Bilyaminu Bello, has failed as a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) held that she had a case to answer.
The court in a ruling by Justice Yusuf Halilu, dismissed her no-case submission and ordered her to enter her defense.
Justice Halilu held that from the preponderance of evidence of all the prosecution witnesses, a thick cloud had been formed by the prosecution making it important to call the other side to make their case.
“The submission of no-case-to-answer by Maryam Sanda, the first defendant, is overruled. I call on the first defendant to enter her defense,” the judge held.
Halilu held that by the evidence adduced before him, the offense is punishable under Section 221 of the Penal Code.
“From the evidence of prosecution witnesses one to six adduced before me, a thick cloud seems to form around the case of the prosecution, making it impossible at this point in time for the other side not to be considered.
The submission of the no-case-to-answer as it were in this particular situation is overruled.
Maryam is being tried before the court for allegedly killing Bello, her husband, who was a nephew of former PDP Chairman, Alhaji Bello Muhammad.
The court also discharged and acquitted Maryam’s mother, Maimuna Aliyu; brother, Aliyu Sanda, and housemaid, Sadiya Aminu, who was accused by police of assisting Maryam to conceal the evidence by cleaning the blood of the deceased from the scene of the crime.
The judge held that the police, either by omission or commission, had clearly not done well in tying Maimuna, Aliyu, and Sadiya, to the offense of screening.
“The no-case-submission of the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th defendants is hereby upheld and they are hereby discharged and acquitted,” Justice Halilu held.