Popular Dutse restaurant owner’s killer arrested, son implicated

The police in Jigawa State have paraded the son of a popular Dutse restaurant owner, Esther Adekanla, as her alleged killer.

Mrs Adekanla was killed on 15 January at her residence.

The police commissioner in the state, Ahmad Abdullahi, said the investigation revealed the deceased, popularly known as Hadiza Nakowa, was killed by her son, Samuel Segun, 32.

The police said another victim of the attack at Ms Adekanla’s residence, Christiana Michael, 11, (a housemaid), is recuperating from injuries he sustained in the incident.

Mr Abdullahi said the suspect also stole the phones of the deceased, locked the house and moved far away from the area.

“Detectives from State Criminal Investigation Department Dutse (SCID), arrested one Samuel Segun ‘m’ age 32yrs of opposite Awajil Filling Station, Dutse, in connection with the case of the brutal killing of his mother, one Esther Adekanla ‘f’ of the same address. The suspect was arrested via tracking of the deceased phone number, which linked him to the offence.

“Recall that, on 15/02/2024 at about 1600hrs, information at Command’s disposal revealed that one Esther Adekanla ‘f’ of opposite Awajil Filling Station Dutse, popularly known as Hadiza Nakowa, was last seen on 12/02/2024, which made her neighbours suspicious of her being missing, as all efforts made to reach her phone lines proved abortive.

“On receipt of the report, detectives from Dutse Division quickly rushed to the house. On their arrival, it was discovered that the house was locked, but the door was forced open, where her body was found in the sitting room, lying lifeless in a pool of blood.

“The team also observed visible cuts on her head and neck with the body decomposing. Similarly, her young house help, one Christiana Michael ‘F’ age 11yrs, was found locked in a store with cuts on her head; alive, but unconscious,” the police commissioner narrated.

“On interrogation, the suspect disclosed that, on 12/02/2024 at about 2200hrs, his mother returned from where she sells food, and that she started fighting with the young girl, Christiana Michael ‘f’, to the extent that she held a knife. In his effort to rescue the girl, he dragged her back when they all fell, she cut herself on the neck with the said knife”, the police commissioner said.

Killing was accidental – Suspect

However, the suspect told reporters that his mother died accidentally from knife injuries as he struggled to separate a fight between her and the housemaid.

“Initially, she was fighting with the little girl (housemaid), she was holding a knife, I was caught in the melee to intervene because anyone who knows my mother knew that she is temperamental.

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“She died by an accident, it was not my intention to kill her.

“She died in the process of struggling between me and her, she was holding a knife and the knife stabbed. Upon seeing what happened, I was scared and I left in a hurry”, the suspect narrated.