A Kano Magistrate Court presided over by Mustapha Sa’ad Datti has remanded eight Sharia Court judges and seven Sharia Commission staff members in prison custody over the alleged diversion of N99 million, belonging to orphans in Kano state.
Datti issued the remand order on Thursday following charges of diverting N99 million brought against the 15 persons before the court by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
Magistrate Datti ordered that the defendants should remain behind bars, going forward to the next sitting.
The defendants include Gazzali Wada, Sani Ali, Yusuf Abdullahi, Sani Uba Ali, Bashir Baffa, Hadi Tijjani Mu’azu, Alkasim Abdullahi and Mustafah Bala.
Other defendants in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Center facility are Abdullahi Sulaiman Zango, Bashir Ali Kurawa, Jaafar Ahmad, Adamu Balarabe, Aminu Abdulhadi, Garba Yusuf, and Usaina Imam.
As presented, the judges and the staff were accused of conspiracy, betrayal of trust and theft of N99 million, crimes they all pleaded not guilty to.
The lead counsel for the plaintiff, Zaharaddin Kofar Mata, asked for an adjournment to present substantial evidence before the court.
On their part, counsel for the defendants unanimously applied to have their clients released on bail. The court, however, declined to grant the application and ordered that the defendants should be remanded in prison custody.
The case was adjourned to February 1, 2023, for the continuation of the hearing.