Residents have confirmed the death of eleven persons who were victims of the mosque attack allegedly carried out by one Shafiu Abubakar on Wednesday at Gadan village on the outskirts of Gezawa in Kano State.
Politics Nigeria reports that 38-year-old Abubakar set a mosque on fire during the early morning prayer over inheritance dispute.
About 40 worshippers were said to be praying when the arsonist ignited fire and locked them inside the mosque to deny them a chance to escape.
A resident of the village Rabiu Gadan, confirmed that 11 people have so far died due to the burns they suffered and that the funeral of eight of them had already been conducted while the corpses of the remaining three were being prepared for burial on Thursday.
Rabiu said the attack was not Shafiu’s first violent outburst as he had previously assaulted two of his older brothers and then surrendered himself o the police claiming he had killed them.
Another resident, Malam Garba, said the suspect was earlier taken for medical examination but doctors confirmed he was fit.
“He has always been troubled, but when he challenged his family to give him his portion of the inheritance, they did. He was even taken to a mental institution once when he attacked his relatives but he was given a clean bill of health. So, he was clearly in his right mind when he set the fire, two of his uncles died and we buried them yesterday already,” Garba told Leadership.
The suspect is currently in police custody, where he already confessed to his actions, citing frustration with the manner some of the victims handled the inheritance sharing.
He told the police that despite warnings to his family members to stop maltreating him, his pleas fell on deaf ears, and as such he did not regret his actions.
While residents confirmed the inheritance dispute within the family, the exact nature of the disagreement remained unclear.
At the Murtala Muhammad Specialist Hospital in Kano, where the injured were rushed for treatment, relatives anxiously awaited the fate of their loved ones.
A resident who simply identified herself as Maijida said, “My father and two brothers are severely injured and I was told some people have died already, what will I do if I lose them, I will be left all alone.”
Recounting his experience, another resident said: Musa Muhammad Gadan said, “I was late going to the prayers, but as I was rushing to the mosque, I heard a blasting noise and then I heard people screaming so I rushed over, the flames had engulfed the building, I and some others tried to rescue them and that is how I sustained burns on my arms.”
The deputy inspector general of police in charge of Zone 1 Kano, AIG Umar Mamman Sanda, confirmed the tragic loss of eight lives on Wednesday when he led a delegation of security personnel.
The delegation included the commissioner of police in the state and the director, Department of State Services (DSS).