An elderly Islamic cleric, identified as Ladan Zubairu, was brutally killed inside a mosque in Kano State on Monday morning.
The incident occurred at Yusuf Garko Mosque in the Maraba Quarters area of the state. According to eyewitness accounts, the attacker struck shortly after dawn prayers, triggering panic within the community.
The victim’s son, Isa Kasim, told journalists that his father had gone to the mosque early to perform the call to prayer. He explained that after completing the first call, his father usually sat briefly to offer supplications before making the second call.
“He had just finished the first call and was seated when a man entered the mosque with a weapon, grabbed him and slaughtered him. His throat was slit,” Kasim said.
Following the attack, residents reportedly mobilised and pursued the suspect. The assailant was caught by an angry mob, lynched, and his house was later set ablaze before security operatives intervened to restore calm.
Kasim further revealed that after the suspect was killed, residents discovered the cleric’s severed throat wrapped in a nylon bag inside the attacker’s pocket.
Confirming the incident, the Kano State Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa, said police officers swiftly moved to the area to prevent further violence and restore order.
“Our officers intervened promptly and normalcy has been restored in the Maraba Quarters area,” Kiyawa stated.
The police recovered both bodies and conveyed them to the Mohammed Abdullahi Wase Teaching Hospital for autopsy. Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, CP Ibrahim Adamu Bakori, has ordered a thorough investigation into the incident and assured that anyone found culpable will face the full weight of the law.
