Islamic teacher arrested for eloping with 11-year-old girl

An Islamic teacher, Yashir Abubakar, has told men of the Kano State Police Command that it was love at first sight that made him to disappear with an unnamed 11-year-old girl.

The girl’s father was said to have reported to the police that his daughter living with him in Kano could not be found, before the suspect was traced to Kebbi State, where he was arrested.

The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, SP Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa, who gave the details of the arrest, said that the girl’s father said that the suspect, aged 38, asked his daughter to accompany him to a place, which he approved of, with his belief that he was a Quranic teacher.

The father further said that since then, his daughter’s whereabouts had been unknown.

Not only that , Kiyawa stated, Abubakar, who claimed to be a Quranic teacher, was also found to have obtained money from people under false pretences to the tune of over a million naira, and had lured the 11-year-old girl when he wanted to escape to Kebbi State.

The report was said to have made acting Commissioner of Police and Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of Finance and Administration, Abubakar Zubairu, to detail policemen to track him.

The police spokesman said that he was eventually found at Yauri in Kebbi, arrested and brought back to Kano.

The PPRO also disclosed that when Abubakar first came to Kano, he was with a girl called Wurera whom he claimed to be his wife.

Investigation revealed that he and Wurera were not legitimate couple but staying together as lovers, prompting the acting CP to direct that the case be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation Department for further investigation.

In an interview with the Quranic teacher, he expressed regret at the step he took without thinking of its consequences.

Narrating how it started, Abubakar said that as a Mallam, he moved from Zamfara State, his state of origin, to Warri in Delta State where he took Wurera and stayed for about eight months.

Giving the age of Wurera as 21, he admitted not being married to her traditionally or in religious manner, saying that he just picked her up to be acting as his wife.

He said, “My father was the one who taught me to be a Mallam. I also learnt the teachings from a Mallam in Gusau for two years.

“I came from Warri to Tundun Wada in Kano where my uncle lives. I rented a place and was staying with Wurera whom I made my uncle and others to see as my wife. I was helping goat traders to sell the animals so as to get some payment as a middle man. I was also engaged in Quranic teaching.”

On the 11-year-old he took away, he said that he admired her immediately he saw her. “I just fell in love with her with an intention to marry her, but I took her to Yauri in Kebbi State without the consent of her parents. However, I have not had any sexual relationship with her. I only enrolled her in a school,” he said.

He also admitted  obtaining money under false pretence but did not specifically say how he did it.

He spoke with regret, saying that it was disobedience to his day that brought about his predicament.

“I’m from a polygamous family. My father has four wives, but my mother is his first wife. I was having problems with him because of the other wives who always look down on and ridicule my mother.

“Whenever that happened, I would defend my mother but whenever the wives reported me to my father on the issues, he was not always happy with me, with him supporting the younger wives. At a point, he told me to leave his house, saying that I should go and establish Quranic school somewhere since I had already been taught. That was why I left Zamfara.

“I regret all that I did. Staying with a woman without being married to her is a sin in our  Islamic teaching,” the suspect further said in the interview.

He advised other Islamic clerics having issues with their parents to go back and settle the differences.

The girl with whom he came to Kano, Wurera, in her explanation admitted not being married to the Islamic teacher but just staying together in towns visited.

According to Wurera, “I met Mallam when one of my friends told me that he was interested in me. My friend gave me his number and we started communicating.

“One day, I deceived my father that I was going to my maternal aunt’s place in Kano. My father knew I was lying but I convinced him. He was even the one who took me to the train station and paid my fare to Kano from Kebbi State.

“On getting to Kano, I linked up with the Mallam and we started living together as husband and wife.

“I didn’t know what transpired between him and the 11-year-old girl. All I knew was that he told me we were returning to Yauri in Kebbi. He picked the girl when we were going. But I didn’t see him do anything with her.

My parents were not privy to his moves with me, and I knew that I have put myself in a big mess. He did not marry me properly and my parents didn’t know him.”

(Tribune)