A driver attached to the wife of the 16th Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, was granted N60 million bail by a Chief Magistrates' Court in Kano on Wednesday. Suleiman Yakubu, charged alongside Idris Uba-Musa and Abdullahi Hassan, faces counts of conspiracy, theft, and receiving stolen property. The prosecutor, Abubakar Ibrahim, said Yakubu broke into the room of Sadiya Ado-Bayero, the emir's first wife, on March 16 and stole jewellery, N500,000 in cash, and a Samsung phone, all valued at N60 million. Yakubu pleaded guilty, while the two co-defendants entered not guilty pleas.
The charges are based on sections 97, 280, and 317 of the Penal Code, according to the prosecution. Defence counsel Mr A.A. Abdullahi filed a bail application for all three accused. Chief Magistrate Hadiza Abdurahman granted bail in the sum of N10 million each, requiring two reliable sureties. One surety must be a father or brother of the defendant, the other a civil servant not below Grade Level 15. The case was adjourned to April 13 for hearing.
The fact that the driver to the emir's wife pleaded guilty before trial raises immediate questions about how security operates within such high-profile households. If N60 million in valuables could be taken by a staff member, the breach is not just criminal but systemic. This case may not shift Kano's power circles, but it exposes vulnerabilities that money and status have failed to seal. For ordinary Nigerians, it's a familiar story—trust exploited, assets lost, and the law moving slowly.
