The Supreme Court has upheld the death sentence passed on Maryam Sanda, confirming earlier decisions that found her guilty of killing her husband, Bilyamin Bello.
The apex court reached the decision in a split judgment of four to one, dismissing her appeal and ruling that she failed to show any error that could overturn the verdict.
In its lead judgment delivered by Justice Moore Adumein, the court said the prosecution proved the charge of culpable homicide beyond reasonable doubt. It affirmed the position of the Court of Appeal which had earlier agreed with the trial court that the facts of the case were clear and the conviction was justified.
The court also criticised President Bola Tinubu’s earlier attempt to extend executive clemency to Sanda despite an ongoing appeal, noting that the executive arm had no authority to interfere with a matter that was still before the judiciary. Sanda was first sentenced to death by an Abuja high court on January 27, 2020, after she was found guilty of stabbing her husband to death at their Abuja home in 2017.
Meanwhile, she had already spent close to seven years in Suleja prison before the President approved a reduction of her punishment to a 12 year jail term.
The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, said her inclusion in the recent presidential pardon list was based on compassionate grounds, noting her good conduct, remorse, and the need to consider the welfare of her children.
