By Kato Jamil
A 26-year-old man, identified as Nura Mas’ud, has set on fire his grandmother, Zuwaira Muhammad, in Mu’azu village, Dan Gwanki Ward, Sule Tankarkar Local Government Area of Jigawa State, Nigeria.
Mas’ud was said to have confessed to the crime, claiming that the late grandmother upset him by expressing concern about his physical appearance and health, which did not go down well with him and had on several occasions warned her but she refused, hence his decision to buy petrol, which he poured on her and set fire on her at their family home.
The spokesperson, Jigawa Police Command, Shiisu who confirmed the sad incident to newsmen, said Mas’ud has since been arrested.
Shiisu said: “On October 8, 2024, at about 1600hrs, the command was notified of a sad incident that occurred in Mu’azu village, Dan Gwanki ward, Sule Tankarkar LGA.
“One Nura Mas’ud ‘m’ age 26yrs of Mu’azu village, Sule Tankarkar LGA, went to his family home with a petrol canister and suddenly poured it on his grandmother, Zuwaira Muhammad ‘f’, age 60yrs of the same address, and set her ablaze.
“The elderly woman eventually passed away while being treated as a result of the conflagration. The medical doctor on call certified her dead and the corpse was released to relatives for burial according to Islamic rites.
“A team of police detectives from Sule Tankarkar division quickly arrested the suspect and detained him in the cell. He was later ferried to the State Criminal Investigation Department, SCID, for a discreet investigation.
“During the interrogation, the suspect admitted to committing the alleged offence against him.
“A preliminary investigation revealed that the suspect suffers from mental illness and has been receiving treatment at Kazaure Psychiatric Hospital.
“The suspects further stated that the late grandmother upset him by expressing concern about his physical appearance and health, which he did not want. He warned her on several occasions but she refused. Thus, he purchased gasoline, poured it on her and ignited her.
“The Jigawa State Commissioner of Police, A. Abdullahi, directed the State Criminal Investigation Department, Dutse, to thoroughly investigate the case and vigorously prosecute the perpetrator to deter others from repeating it,” Shiisu added.
