A tragic incident occurred on Tuesday in the Yamadawa “A” community of Gwale Local Government Area, Kano State, where a young man, Abdullateef Muhammad, was beaten to death after he was mistaken for a thief.
Residents reportedly began shouting “thief” as Abdullateef stepped out early in the morning to pray on Tuesday.
He was chased, caught, and beaten by neighbourhood residents.
His wife, Habiba Abdullateef, said she "heard the shouts shortly after he left home."
When he failed to return, she tried calling him, but his phone was switched off. She contacted his sister to ask if he had made any calls, but he had not.
Habiba explained that around 7 a.m., she borrowed a neighbour’s phone to try to reach her husband, but couldn't.
After describing her husband, a neighbour’s husband told her that someone matching the description had been beaten after being accused of theft and dragged towards a junction.
On getting to the scene, Habiba said she could barely recognise him due to the "severity of the beating," identifying him only by his clothes.
"I couldn't recognise my husband. They beat him and took his phone, keys, and dragged him to Yamadawa Junction," she cried.
"I want justice for my husband."
A resident who spoke on the condition of anonymity confirmed it was a case of mistaken identity and was shocked that members of the community did not recognise their neighbour.
“She came to my place, and she described the husband. I asked her to show me his picture, and she did. So we went to the junction to confirm if it was he husband.
"The moment she saw him, she started crying. So, we took her home. It is sad that the neighbours could not recognise their own neighbour.”
The Ward Head of Yamadawa “A”, Ahmad Badamasi, confirmed the incident and said the victim died at the Murtala Muhammad Specialist Hospital.
He said the matter had been reported to the police and that officers visited the area for further investigation.
