Husband says DPO sent his wife back to the mob that lynched her in Kaduna

By Ibrahim Hassan-Wuyo, Kaduna

The husband of Ummulkhairi Muhammad, who was lynched and burned by a mob in Maraban Jos, Kaduna State, claims that a Divisional Police Officer (DPO) removed her hijab and sent her back to the crowd shortly before her death.

In an interview with BBC Hausa monitored in Kaduna, Aliyu Muhammad described the final moments that led to his wife’s death. He said the couple had been married for 14 years and had four children—two boys and two girls— and that the day of the incident began like any other.

Aliyu recalled that they exchanged pleasantries before leaving home for their respective engagements. “When I was leaving for work that morning, she told me they had a religious lecture at Malama Mardiyya’s Islamiyya school. I then left for my mechanic workshop,” he said.

He added that he had felt an unexplained unease in the days before the incident but did not share it with his wife. “Two days before her death, I kept feeling uneasy, as if something bad was going to happen, but I did not tell her,” he said.

The grieving husband alleges that his wife sought refuge at a police station after being attacked by a mob, but was later returned to the attackers. He further claims that a DPO removed her hijab and ordered her out of the station, after which she was beaten and set ablaze.

These allegations add a new dimension to the incident, which has sparked nationwide outrage following the circulation of a viral video showing the woman being attacked and burned in public.

Meanwhile, the Kaduna State Police Command has confirmed the arrest and arraignment of 24 suspects in connection with the killing. The suspects were charged before a Magistrate Court sitting at NDA Junction, Kaduna, on offences including criminal conspiracy, inciting public disturbance, mischief, destruction of public and police property, and culpable homicide.