HomeBreaking NewsKano atheist, pleads guilty to blasphemy, gets 24 years imprisonment

Kano atheist, pleads guilty to blasphemy, gets 24 years imprisonment

Date:

Related stories

Nigerian governor loses wife after brief illness

The wife of the governor of Akwa Ibom State,...

TCN tower attack leaves Damaturu without power

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) announced on Sunday...

PDP board of trustees holds crucial meeting amid internal strife

Members of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the...

Nationwide protest planned for October 1 over rising hardship

A nationwide protest demanding an end to the escalating...

Tension rises as NLC President Ajaero responds to police summons

Tension is high in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja,...
spot_img

A Kano-born atheist, Mubarak Bala, has been sentenced to 24 years imprisonment after pleading guilty to all the 18-count charges bordering on incitement and breach of public peace leveled against him.

Mr Bala, who is the president of the Humanist Association of Nigeria, was arrested at his home in Kaduna on April 28, 2020, and taken to Kano, where complaints of blasphemy and incitement were lodged against him.

According to Daily Nigerian, Bala had earlier posted comments critical of Islam, Allah, and Prophet Muhammad on Facebook, causing outrage among Muslims.

There has been a campaign for his release or trial, with activists saying he was out of touch with his wife and lawyer.

But appearing before Justice Farouk Lawan of Kano High Court 4, Audu Bako Secretariat on Tuesday, Mr Bala pleaded guilty to all the charges.

When the judge asked him whether he knows the consequences of his guilty plea, Mr Bala insisted on not changing his initial plea.

Mr Bala’s lawyer, James Ibor, had earlier tried to persuade his client to change his plea, but he insisted that he was guilty to charges.

The lawyer however cited frustration and fear as reasons for his client’s guilty plea, saying his client had been in prison for two years.

But Mr Bala, who appeared unruffled, raised his hand and told the court that he was guilty as charged.

In his plea of leniency, Mr Bala however said the intent of his social media posts was not to cause violence. He, therefore, promised not to repeat the blasphemous posts in the future.

Passing the sentence, Justice Lawan sentenced him to 24 years imprisonment. (DailyNigerian)

Subscribe

Latest stories