Former Nigerian military ruler's security chief sentenced to death

Jan 30, 2012, 19:17 GMT

Abuja - An aide to Nigeria's former military ruler was sentenced to death on Monday by a court for his role in the killing of an opposition politician's wife.

After an eight-hour trial, Hamza al-Mustapha, the country's former security chief, was found guilty of the 1996 shooting of Kudirat Abiola. A co-accused, Lateef Shofolahan, was also found guilty of conspiracy and murder and received the same sentence.

No exact date was given for the execution, which is to be carried out by hanging - a rarity in Nigeria.

Kudirat Abiola was the wife of Moshod 'MKO' Abiolia. Though widely believed to have won the country's election in 1993, the opposition leader was denied the chance to take office by the then-incumbent.

The political chaos led to a military coup by General Sani Abacha, who brutally ruled Africa's most populous nation until his death in 1998. He was later also found to have embezzled billions of dollars.

In 1996, while MKO Abiolia was in jail, his wife was shot dead in Lagos.

Al-Mustapha had told the court he was not involved in her death, and his counsel, Olalekan Ojo, said he would appeal the verdict.

The former security chief has managed to escape several previous attempts to convict and jail him for various alleged offences.

There was some concern in Nigeria that hanging al-Mustapha, a Muslim from the north, could stoke religious tensions, which have killed thousands in recent years.

Al-Mustapha hails from the northern Yobe State, which is also the home base of Boko Haram, a violent Islamist group that since 2009 has been on an anti-government campaign that has left hundreds dead, many of them civilians.