By Segun Awofadeji
Tragedy struck in Sade village of Darazo Local Government Area of Bauchi State when a middle-aged man, Talle Mai Ruwa, was set ablaze by yet-to-be identified youths for alleged blasphemy against Prophet Mohammed.
THISDAY checks revealed that the deceased, who was taken to the police station in the village last Monday after his alleged blasphemous act, was forcefully taken away from the station by a mob of angry youths last Tuesday and lynched in broad daylight.
Mai Ruwa, who was said to be mentally deranged, was alleged to have blasphemed against Prophet Mohammed when a girl came to fetch water from his borehole without his consent, an act which was said to have infuriated him, thereby kicking her bucket and spilling its content in the process.
According to a source in the village who narrated what happened to journalists, the girl begged the deceased in the name of God and the Prophet to allow her to fetch the water, but Ruwa was so angry to the extent that he allegedly insulted her parents and the Prophet.
The alleged blasphemy, it was learnt, raised temper among the villagers, leading to tension in the village.
“The tension in the village last Monday made the village head to take him to the police station in the village where he spent the night.
“By the next morning, the issue had spread, and everyone in the village was provoked. Later, a group of angry youths stormed the police station, subdued the police officers and grabbed Ruwa. He was beaten to death and his dead body was burnt,” the source said.
Another villager narrated that the irate youths, after beating him to death, dragged his lifeless body round the village and set it on fire and burnt it to ashes.
The source said the irate youths later dragged the remains to the front of his compound, where his aged mother helplessly watched them set his body ablaze and burnt it.
As of the time of filing this report, the police in the state are yet to react to the incident, as efforts made to get the state Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Ahmed Wakil, to react, proved abortive.
