Former First Lady Hajiya Turai Yar’Adua, has handed over to the police her 70-year-old domestic servant, Malam Yusuf Jikwando Sarkin-Gida for allegedly conspiring to steal household items worth N91 million.
The Commissioner Of Police, Katsina state, Usman Abdullahi, disclosed this to journalists on Tuesday in Katsina.
Abdullahi said:
“The police has arrested Alhaji Yusuf Sarkin-gida after a formal complaint by Hajiya Turai Yar’adua to the Police two weeks ago.”
“The suspect is the custodian of all the keys and property of Hajiya Turai Yar’adua for the past forty years.”
“There are 37 boxes in the custody of the suspect, but only 27 boxes are in the store.”
“The several items in the 27 boxes are completely missing and the suspect has failed to give full explanation on the goods and items in the boxes.”
Jikwando, who is the longest serving domestic servant to the Yar’Adua family, was allegedly arrested two days before Eid-el Kabir in his house at Samji Quarters in Katsina. He has served the Yar’Adua family for over forty years.
A source close to the family said that five well-armed policemen invaded Jikwando’s house and searched the entire house, but only found three measures of rice and a quarter bag of maize. According to him, Jikwando’s eldest son and second to the last born were later arrested.
The Commissioner said the suspect had been serving the Late Umar Yar’adua family even before her husband became the Governor and later the President of the country.
Mr. Abdullahi said the suspect was in police custody, where he was assisting them to conduct intensive investigation on the missing items.
When contacted, the spokesperson of Sarkin-gida’s family, Mohammed Yusuf, said their father was innocent of the charge leveled against him.
He said the arrest and detention of their father before the Eld-el-Kabir celebration had thrown the family into confusion.
