Almost 19 months after, residents of the Mortgage Area of Gusau, capital of Zamfara State, still shudder at the memory of the callousness of Kamalu, who hired assassins to murder his mother, Hajia Aisha, and his younger sisters, aged nine and 11.

The bodies of the victims were dumped in the Bager dam, located off the Gusau-Dansadau Road in the state capital. Although Kamalu was eventually tracked down by the police, arrested and is now standing trial, his accomplices are still at large and fugitives from justice. That is why the residents are grieved and baying for justice to be served Kamalu for the heinous crime allegedly masterminded by him.

The day infamy happened a day before May 29, 2013. While other patriotic citizens were preparing to mark Democracy Day, generally rejoicing and thanking God for the survival of the current dispensation of civil rule, Kamalu and his cohorts were also perfecting plans on how to commit the triple murders.

It is still not yet revealed the exact time of the day when the satanic team of assassins struck and snuffed out life from the trio of mother and her two daughters. However, what is known is that a good citizen informed the police at 8:30 on May 29 that a dead body was seen floating on the water at Bager dam, from which the State Water Board sources water treated and supplied to the metropolis.

The police quickly moved and recovered the corpse, which was taken to the Federal Medical Centre Gusau for autopsy. The postmortem examination of the corpse showed that there were deep cuts and injuries all over it. This discovery led the police to suspect foul play, and listed it as a case of SUD (sudden unnatural death).

Meanwhile, relations of the late Hajia who were disturbed by her sudden disappearance trooped to the police station on May 30, 2013 at midday, to file a report that she was missing, and had not been seen for 48 hours. They told the police that all efforts made to contact her on the phone were unsuccessful because her phone was not reachable.

After receiving the report, the police took the relations to the FMC mortuary, where they immediately identified the corpse shown to them as the late Hajia Aisha, their missing sister.

Based on this positive identification of the corpse, policemen led by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) drove to the home of the deceased and found the place locked up. They forced the door open and were confronted by the shocking sight of blood stains all over the house. Meanwhile, the place had been ransacked by the perpetrators of the crime, who probably removed money and other valuable items.

The relations informed the police that the personal car of the late Hajiya Aisha was not in the compound, but curiously her son’s car was parked within the premises. When the police searched the car, they found blood-stained pillow cases and bedsheets in the boot of the car. They took the items away as exhibits. Attention then shifted to what must have happened to the two young daughters, who were also living with their mother. The police promptly suspected that the assailants must have killed them too and probably dumped their bodies where the body of their mother was discovered.

The police team headed straight to the riverside to search for the corpses of the little girls. Fortunately, the two corpses were recovered. One had cuts all over the body, but the other one had its throat slashed through with a knife.

Suspicion immediately fell upon on Kamalu, a school dropout, who relations recalled had consistently threatened to kill his mother if she failed to give him money.

Through diligent detective work, the police tracked him down in Kaduna town, to where he had driven the mother’s car. Some valuable items and cash belonging to the deceased were also recovered from him.

During interrogation, Kamalu owned up to the crime, and said that he masterminded the brutal and gruesome slaying of his biological mother and two sisters. He also revealed the names of four of his accomplices. Two of them were instantly arrested by the police, but two escaped and have remained at large.

The Zamfara State Police Command said through the public relations officer that it would remain on the trail of the two fugitives, assuring that it would not be long before they are arrested to face the full wrath of the law.

•Credit (except headline): Sunday Sun.

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