Three Widows Narrate How Shehu Jatau And His Boys Killed Their Husbands, Raped Them At Jawuri, Wase Plateau

Yakubu Busari

The trial of Shehu Jatau and three others resumed on Thursday in Jos Division of Plateau State High Court, Jatau and others are standing trial for allegedly killing Apolos , Nanven, and Nanlir all in Jawuri, Boltak communities of Kadarko district in Wase Local Government Council of Plateau State.

At the resumed hearing before Justice S.P Gang of the state High Court Plateau with the four prosecution witnesses, (PW 11-15)  Mrs. Janet Nanven, Mrs. Angelina Dogo, Mrs. Ladi Ponven, and Lucy Apolos provided more details on how Shehu Jatau and his boys gunned down the three persons while they were trying to escape he and his boys deadly onslaught 2 years ago at Jawuri, allegedly riding on a  Motorbike being ridden by Nanjul .

The Thursday trial was initially slated to take four witnesses’ evidence which captured action taken by Shehu Jatau and his boys’ alleged massacre of women and children.

However, due to the interpreted English version of the conversation by the clerk could explain and ask PW11 Mrs. Janet Nanven , whose husband died instantly an act that scared them to run into a hideout before driving to the compound where they asked them to come out and lay on the ground.

The PW11-15 continues giving evidence of his involvement in the murder of many people after sporadic shootings that blocked all entrances to the community.

Mrs Janet Nanven recognized Shehu Jatau and Nanjul as masterminded of the dastardly massacre of people, in their evidence, recalled his previous encounter with how the defendants who came from Kurmi of Taraba state to unleash terror sometimes on 12-07-2019 when her son came for school fees and herself with the husband Nanven intensified preparation for the son returning back to Pil-Gani where he the deceased son is schooling.

She told the court about their ugly experience in the hands of Shehu Jatau and his boys following the death of people. We reported the incident to our village head who later reported to the Wase Police Divisional headquarters.

Meanwhile, Lucy Apolos explained that Shehu Jatau was the Ponzhi Kurmi in Taraba State yet he sneaked into Jawuri to wreak havoc on them.

“We abandoned our home in Boltak to take refuge at Jawuri but on a faithful Friday evening, we were cooking when we heard sporadic gunshots in all direction of Jawuri little do we know that Shehu Jatau was coming to unleash mayhem on us sacking the entire residents.

However, close to the river bank where we were about to escape through, we saw clearly how corpses of our husbands mutilated laying in their own pull of blood, she narrated.

Mrs. Ladi, Angelina,Lucy, and Janet both witnesses gave a vivid account of their encounter with Shehu Jatau and his killer squads killed many even security personnel were not spared, our farm produced including animals were carted away.

We begged Shehu Jatau to spare our lives by kneeling, he allegedly raped us and, we refused to expose our true identity to him because he has concluded a plan to kill us.

Justice S.P Gang has adjourned the case to the 8th of November, 2021 for the continuation of the hearing and taking of additional two witnesses.

The adjournment was for the C.O.P to close their case and the defendants will open defense.