In the wee hours of August 8, armed men invaded the residence of a Gombe-based Islamic cleric, Sheikh Ibrahim Musa, popularly known as Albanin Kuri and stabbed him to death.
WikkiTimes had earlier reported that the cleric was murdered at his home in Tabra, the outskirts of the Gombe metropolis.
Fatima Muhammad, the second wife of the deceased, revealed how the cleric was murdered after he was severely stabbed by one of the armed men.
The 19-year-old widow has been married to the cleric for only eight months, and she is presently seven months pregnant.
According to her, she was awakened from a deep slumber with a sharp slap around 12 am by one of the five armed men who invaded their house.
Her words: “Mallam was sleeping next to me. I started praying silently, then my husband gently dragged me into his arms, he still wasn’t aware of their presence because he was always a heavy sleeper.
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“One of them then shone a torch light on his face and he woke up. They immediately demanded his phone and money but he told them that he had no money with him and he gave them his ATM card.
“After seizing our phones, they still stood hovering over us, indecisive, that was when I sensed they wanted something else. My husband kept staring at one of them. I think he looked familiar to him or he was just preparing to fight back.
“Suddenly, my husband jumped and yanked off one of the men’s masks and they fought for a while before the man stabbed my husband with a knife in his chest.”
Fatima further narrated that she saw two more men standing outside, and they left immediately, jumping over the fence.
‘BEFORE HE DIED, MALLAM SAID HE FORGAVE THEM…’
Bereaved Fatima told WikkiTimes that the deceased was rushed to the General Hospital, Gombe, where he was immediately referred to Federal Teaching Hospital, where he died five minutes later.
“He was bleeding a lot, after I sought help from neighbours, I had to tie a cloth around the wound. I was hysterical, cursing the thugs, but despite Mallam’s condition, he kept pleading with me to pray for Allah to guide them, and he has forgiven them for what they did,” she narrated.
She added that Mallam will always be remembered for his godly ways and gentle manners.
“Hours before he was killed, he had just preached to me about upholding the oneness of Allah and always accepting fate in whatever form it occurs,” she recalled. “Mallam has forgiven his killers, but I want them to know that his family will never forgive them,”
FAMILY LOOKS UP TO GOVT FOR JUSTICE
Dahiru Halliru, an immediate brother of the deceased, also spoke to WikkiTimes, calling on the state government and constituted authority to investigate the matter and find the killers.
“We are aware that the police are doing their best. But we need them to put in more effort,” he said. “We are also calling on the state governor to prioritise this hunt because Mallam was not just a loss to the family but to Gombe state.”
Spokesman for Gombe Police Command, Maheed Muaz, said investigation is ongoing but there has been no progress in that regard yet.
