A Kano State Magistrate Court has remanded a popular Islamic cleric, Ibrahim Makwarari, in prison for the alleged forgery of title ownership documents for two properties located on Ahmadu Bello Way in the Kano metropolis.
The defendant appeared before Magistrate Court No. 53, sitting at Normansland, Kano, on Wednesday.
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He faces charges of illegal possession of land and forgery of land documents.
When the charges were read to him, Mr Makwarari pleaded not guilty.
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The police filed the charges following a petition from the State Ministry of Land.
The ministry alleged that Mr Makwarari forged land titles that originally bore the names of Kassim Usman Baba and Audu Yaro Fagge.
Investigators stated that while the defendant was found in possession of the disputed documents, he failed to provide a satisfactory explanation regarding their authenticity.
The defence counsel, A. T. Shehu, applied for bail, providing assurances to the court that his client would be available for trial. However, the prosecution counsel, Nura Salisu, opposed the application.
Mr Salisu argued that the defendant had a history of evading police invitations and was only apprehended following a specific court order.
In his ruling, the magistrate, Mustapha Datti, granted the defendant bail in the sum of ₦20 million with two sureties.
The bail conditions include that the defendant must submit his international passport to the court and two sureties.
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Mr Datti said the sureties must be a district head from any local government area within the state, supported by an official letter from the relevant Emirate Council, and a Kano-based businessman with verifiable property.
Both sureties are required to submit recent passport photographs.
The magistrate ordered that Mr Makwarari be remanded in a correctional facility until his bail conditions are fully met.
The case has been adjourned to 12 February for hearing.
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