Ja’afaru Ahmed, boss, NPS

Six inmates sentenced to die by stoning Sharia courts over various offences are still waiting for their sentences to be carried out over 10 years after their conviction in Bauchi, the State’s comptroller of Prison Mr Sulaiman Suleiman, has said.

In the statement issued on Friday, the Controller also said 10 other inmates sentenced for amputation have also been waiting for the sentences to be carried out for over ten years.

In the statement signed by the command’s Public Relations Officer, Mr Adam Abubakar and made available to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Suleiman said the prison service had written to the state governor on the inmates’ plight.

The controller, however, commended the state Chief Judge, Justice Rabi Umar for her frequent visits to the prisons and recent indications that the convicts would soon know their fate.

Suleiman said the chief judge had revealed that a team of lawyers were studying the cases to fashion out appropriate legal avenues to bring an end to the prolonged incarceration.

“She said that the judiciary was aware of the increasing number of such cases in the prisons, with some of the inmates having spent over 13 years without having their sentences executed.

“The chief judge has also promised to review the cases of other inmates as part of the 3rd quarter jail delivery exercise before the year runs out.”