A Magistrates’ Court in Kaduna has sentenced a 34-year-old trader, Jibrin Yusuf, to 10 strokes of cane for assaulting his friend, Abubakar Haruna, over a N3,000 debt.
Presiding over the case on Wednesday, Magistrate Ibrahim Emmanuel handed down the punishment after Yusuf pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy and assault.
In his ruling, Emmanuel noted that the court decided to be lenient since the convict admitted guilt without wasting the court’s time.
However, he warned Yusuf against repeating such actions, stating that harsher consequences would follow if he committed a similar offense in the future.
Aside from the corporal punishment, the court also ordered Yusuf to pay Haruna N230,000 in restitution for damages.
Prosecutor Inspector Chidi Leo told the court that the incident occurred on February 16 when Haruna, who resides in the same compound as Yusuf, was in his room when the convict approached him to demand repayment of the debt.
When Haruna was unable to produce the money, the situation escalated into a confrontation.
Yusuf allegedly mobilized four accomplices—who are now at large—and stormed the complainant’s room, physically assaulting him.
Leo further stated that the group destroyed Haruna’s property valued at N50,000 and stole his brother’s mobile phone worth N180,000.
The prosecutor said the offenses violated provisions of the Kaduna State Penal Code of 2017