Death toll in Kano mosque explosion rises to 11

Death toll in Kano mosque explosion rises to 11

The Kano State Police Command, on Thursday, said 11 persons have died following Wednesday’s bombing incident at a mosque in Gadan Village, Gezawa Local Government Area of the state.

The police spokesman in Kano, Abdullahi Haruna, confirmed this to our correspondent.

Haruna said three more of the victims died on Wednesday, raising the figure to 11 from the eight casualties recorded on Wednesday.

The police had on Wednesday said they arrested a 38-year-old man, Shafi’u Abubakar, who bombed a mosque Gadan Village.

“The suspect is Shafi’u Abubakar, aged 38, who said his action was purely in hostility, following a prolonged family disagreement over sharing of inheritance of which those that he alleged to have cheated on him were in the mosque at that moment and he did that for his voice to be heard,” the police spokesman said.

The Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of Zone 1, Umar Sanda, confirmed the incident when a delegation of security personnel visited the victims at Murtala Muhammad Specialist Hospital.

“What happened is not associated with any act of terrorism, rather it was a skirmish that arose as a result of inheritance distribution.

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“The suspect was said not to be satisfied with the distribution and was reacting to that. He is presently with us and is giving out useful information.

“Out of the 24 that were admitted here, one is dead. It is really unfortunate. He used a locally-made bomb to commit the crime,” he said.

The earlier statement by the PPRO read, “Today, 15/05/2024, at about 0520hrs, reports were received that there was an explosion at a mosque in Gadan Village, Gezawa LGA, Kano State, during ‘Subhi Prayer’ and that some people got injured.

“On receipt of the report, the Commissioner of Police, Kano State Command, CP Mohammed Usaini Gumel, immediately deployed the command’s combined teams consisting of experts in Explosive Ordnance Disposal-Chemical Biological, Radiological and Nuclear led by CSP Haruna Isma’il and other crime-scene policemen, led by the Divisional Police Officer, Gezawa Division,  Haruna Iliya.

“The scene was cordoned off and 24 victims, including 20 male adults and four male children, were removed and rushed to Murtala Mohammed Specialist Hospital, Kano, where they are currently receiving treatment.”

According to eyewitness accounts, shortly after pouring fuel inside the mosque, Aminu locked the doors, thereby trapping worshippers inside, before setting off the bomb.

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One of the injured victims,,Sadik Kamal, who spoke to The PUNCH, said when the flames engulfed the mosque, he desperately attempted to escape but found the exit doors securely locked.

“It was the latecomers who struggled to open the locked doors to make good the escape of those trapped to safety,” Kamal said.

According to him, Aminu has a history of violent behaviour in the village, adding that he had earlier brandished a machete, threatening fellow villagers.

Kamal said authorities had once arrested and sent Aminu to a psychiatric hospital for mental health evaluation.

“His latest action, bordering on arson is not an isolated incident,” Kamal said, noting that the suspect had previously not only set ablaze his brother’s car but also attacked him with a cutlass.

Zabiya Ibrahim, whose three uncles were among the victims, called for justice,  alleging that Aminu’s actions were deliberate and not due to mental illness.

“He knows how to make money,” she said, recalling that he was involved in riding a popular local tricycle known as ‘Adai-Adai ta Sahu’ to make ends meet.

To this end, Ibrahim urged the government to ensure that Aminu was held responsible for his actions to serve as a deterrent to would-be culprits.

Death toll in Kano mosque explosion rises to 11