Jigawa: Woman, 60, dies after grandson sets her ablaze

• According to him, the suspect stormed their family house with a petrol canister and poured it on his grandmother and set her ablaze

One Nura Mas’ud has allegedly set his grandmother ablaze in Jigawa state, the police have said.

The incident happened last Tuesday, October 8, at the suspect’s family house in Mu’azu village, Dan Gwanki ward, in Sule Tankarkar Local Government Area.

The victim, Zuwaira Muhammad, 60, eventually passed away from the injuries sustained in the inferno.

The state Police command’s Public Relations Officer, DSP Lawan Adam, in a statement on Sunday disclosed that 26-year-old Mas’ud has been arrested.

According to him, the suspect stormed their family house with a petrol canister and poured it on his grandmother and set her ablaze.

The command’s spokesman said, “The elderly woman eventually passed away while being admitted to a hospital as a result of the conflagration.”

He stated that the on-call medical doctor certified her death, and her body was released to relatives for burial in line with Islamic rites, saying that a team of detectives from the Sule Tankarkar Division swiftly arrested and detained the suspect.

He said that the suspect was later taken to the State Criminal Investigation Department for a discreet investigation, stressing that during the interrogation, the suspect admitted to committing the alleged offence against him.

Adam stated that that a preliminary investigation indicated that the suspect has a history of mental illness and had been undergoing treatment at Kazaure Psychiatric Hospital.

According to the PPRO, the suspect further stated that the late grandmother upset him by expressing concern about his physical appearance and health, which he did not want, pointing out that he warned her on several occasions but she refused, and as a result, he purchased gasoline, poured and ignited her.

The state Commissioner of Police, A.T. Abdullahi, had directed the SCID to conduct a thorough investigation and ensure the suspect is prosecuted to serve as a deterrent to others