President Bola Tinubu has granted a presidential pardon to Maryam Sanda, who was sentenced to death in 2020 for killing her husband, Bilyaminu Bello.
Sanda, who had spent six years and eight months at the Suleja Medium Security Custodial Centre, regained her freedom following the presidential clemency announced on Saturday.
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According to a statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the pardon was approved after her family appealed for mercy, citing the welfare of her two children and her reformation in custody.
The Presidency stated that Sanda’s release was based on her good conduct, remorse, and commitment to a new lifestyle, adding that she had been a model inmate since her incarceration.
Her clemency formed part of a broader presidential gesture that saw 175 individuals granted pardon, including posthumous forgiveness for environmental activist Ken Saro-Wiwa and former military officer Major General Mamman Vatsa. The decision followed recommendations from the Presidential Advisory Committee on the Prerogative of Mercy.
Sanda was convicted of culpable homicide by the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Abuja and sentenced to death by hanging in January 2020. Her subsequent appeal was dismissed by the Court of Appeal in December the same year, with the Supreme Court later affirming the lower court’s judgment.
The presidential pardon marks the end of a high-profile case that had drawn national attention and public debate over justice, rehabilitation, and the use of executive mercy in Nigeria.
