A Minna High Court has handed down a 17-year prison sentence to a 47-year-old man, Zingfa Nanboi, for his role in a violent attack on a commercial tricycle rider, bringing to a close a case of attempted murder and armed robbery that dates back to 2022.
Delivering judgment at Court Six of the Judiciary Complex, Justice Balkisu Gambo Yusuf ruled that the sentences would run consecutively.
Nanboi was arraigned by the Niger State Ministry of Justice on a three-count charge bordering on criminal conspiracy, attempted culpable homicide, and armed robbery.
The prosecuting counsel, Fatima Mohammed, a Director in the Ministry, told the court that the offences contravened Sections 1(1)(a) and (b) of the Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act, as well as Sections 99 and 229 of the Penal Code Law of Niger State.
The court heard that on May 22, 2022, the convict conspired with one Frank Moses, who remains at large, to attack a commercial tricycle rider, Adamu Saidu.
The victim had picked them up from the Obasanjo Complex in Minna en route to Maikunkele.
Along Airport Road, Nanboi allegedly strangled the rider with a cable and gagged him to prevent him from shouting.
In the course of the attack, the victim was pushed out of the moving tricycle and left unconscious by the roadside.
He later regained consciousness in a bush, where he was found the following morning by a passerby and taken home.
During the trial, the prosecution presented five witnesses and tendered three exhibits, including the defendant’s statement, an audio-visual recording of the statement, and his oral testimony in court.
In her judgment, Justice Yusuf held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt, establishing all three charges against the defendant.
“From the totality of the evidence and testimonies presented, the offences of conspiracy, attempted culpable homicide, and armed robbery have been clearly established against the defendant,” the judge ruled.
In a plea for leniency, defence counsel, Chief Olukunle Oyewole, urged the court to temper justice with mercy, describing the convict as a married man with children and a first-time offender.
However, Justice Yusuf sentenced Nanboi to 10 years’ imprisonment for armed robbery and seven years for attempted culpable homicide, with no option of fine.
The sentences are to run consecutively and will take effect from the date he was first remanded in custody.
