New Year Day: El-Rufai pardons 12 prisoners

The Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has ordered the release of 12 convicts to mark the 2021 celebration of New Year.

This was disclosed in a statement issued on Friday by El-Rufai’s Special Adviser on Media and Communication, Mr Muyiwa Adekeye.

Adekeye said two convicts among the pardoned “were released on the grounds of age.”

He also said that the other ten pardoned convicts were serving sentences of three years and above, with six months or less to serve.

“Tunde Ikuenaya was imprisoned on November 16, 2017, for four years for criminal misappropriation, adding that he is 64 years old and he was expected to be released on March 16, 2021.’’

“Ifeanyi Chiebuike Nweke, Mohammed Mamman Santare and Samaila Danjuma were convicted and sentenced at various times for culpable homicide,’’ the statement read.

Adekeye said the governor also commuted Joshua Yashim’s death sentence to life imprisonment, explaining that the convict was sentenced to death by hanging for culpable homicide on June 9, 2011.

“He has been in prison custody since 2007 when the offence was committed and has spent 13 years there. He did not appeal due to a lack of funds,” he said.