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‘Drug addicts stabbed my husband to death over cough syrup’

The codeine-thirsty youths, one named Hudu Abdulkareem and the other remaining unidentified, got angry when Yaro stood his ground that he was not going to…

The codeine-thirsty youths, one named Hudu Abdulkareem and the other remaining unidentified, got angry when Yaro stood his ground that he was not going to let them have the drug to abuse.  
Yaro did not know that to grandstand with the boys would lead to his death as they apparently valued the syrup above his life, which Abdulkareem took without batting eyelid. A scuffle ensued, according to residents, with the bewildered pharmacist getting stabbed on the thigh with a dagger. While he was trying to defend himself against his attackers, Abdulkareem stabbed him in the chest. Yaro was confirmed dead ten minutes later at a nearby hospital.
After the dust of the tragedy has somewhat settled, the person most-saddled with the weight of the death of Yaro is his wife, Rakiya Yaro, who is expecting their fourth child within the week. Heavily pregnant, Rakiya had two factors to contend with, the biting pangs of advanced pregnancy and on the other hand, the blow of the sudden, violent death of her husband. Her facial expression reflected grief. She narrated to Weekly Trust her last minutes with the deceased, maintaining that he was ebullient, full of life on that the fateful day.  
Rakiya said that all was normal about her husband, adding that as a hardworking man, he was out early to attend to chores. “The news of his violent murder hit me hard,” she said tearfully. “I never saw his death coming. I was at home getting ready to prepare his lunch when the news came. At first, I was numb. It took the special grace of God that I did not go into forced labour. Just thinking about it is devastating. I mean, drug addicts took my husband away because of a bottle of cough syrup.” 
Rakiya said her husband’s murder has truncated the family’s stay in Minna, adding that the village is their next destination. Amidst tears she said she remains unsure how their kids would feed, even as education remains a mirage as the village provides nothing but farm work with no other source of generating income. “The village is not a place we can have the best life can offer the children as we will only depend on goodwill. We do not have any other choice but to go and settle there.”   
Niger State Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) Mr Richard Ogwuche, who spoke with Weekly Trust, stated that police will leave no stone unturned until those behind the killing are arrested and prosecuted. Ogwuche said the parents of Hudu Abdulkareem, the alleged killer, are helping the police with useful information that can lead to the arrest of the young men, adding that the murder is not the first he has committed.  
Neighbours of the Yaros say the late Ikotu was a very friendly, helpful and outgoing man. “He had a good heart, which endeared him to many of us. It is sad to see him meet this kind of violent fate. God will lead the police to apprehend the culprits,” a resident of the area told Weekly Trust.
“From reliable information before the police, this is not the first time has committed murder as he has been on our wanted list for a long time but the community hid him and the result is the recent one,” Ogwuche said.

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