Suspect arrested in killing of 74-year-old woman for ‘blasphemy’

Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, governor of Kano state, has condemned the killing of a 74-year-old woman over an allegation of blasphemy, revealing that a suspected named “Alhaji Dauda” has been arrested.

The throat of Bridget Agbahime, a trader at Kofar Wambai market in Kano city, was slashed by a member of a mob on Thursday for allegedly blaspheming Prophet Mohammed.

At a meeting with religious leaders and the Igbo community on Friday night, Ganduje read a communique describing the killing as “illegal, unfortunate and regrettable”.

The meeting was chaired by Ganduje and attended by the state chairman of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) Ransome Bello, husband of the deceased, Mike Agbahime (a pastor), Islamic scholars and security agencies.

In the six-point resolution, the stakeholders condoled the widower, describing the killing as illegal, unjustifiable and “without her fault”.

Bello said CAN is fully satisfied with the resolutions, adding that “there is nothing better any person would expect more than what you (Ganduje) have done tonight”.

The Eze Ndgibo Kano, Boniface Ibekwe, called on all civil and community leaders to put hands together to ensure lasting peace, urging other governors in Nigeria to emulate Ganduje’s initiatives in ensuring brotherly co-existence.