After spending more than five months in detention without trial, a Nigerian woman and her eight-month-old baby have been released from the Suleja Correctional Centre in Niger State.
The woman, a tailor, was arrested on March 28, 2025, in Abuja while carrying her then three-month-old daughter.
She was picked up near a “Free Palestine” protest after delivering clothes to a customer who was part of the gathering. Security forces reportedly opened fire and carried out mass arrests at the scene.
Initially charged with unlawful assembly alongside other defendants, her lawyers later succeeded in having her name struck from the charge sheet. A prison source confirmed that the court subsequently ordered her release.
“It took some process before the woman and her daughter were released from prison on Monday. They have now been reunited with their family,” the source told SaharaReporters.
Her husband, Misbau, welcomed the development, sharing pictures of his wife and child shortly after they regained freedom. He had earlier accused authorities of injustice and negligence, noting that his wife and baby were held without trial under a hurriedly obtained remand order.
“My wife is a tailor. On that day, she went to deliver clothes to a customer at the protest ground. Suddenly, police and military started shooting and arresting people, especially women in hijabs. She was carrying our baby on her back and had no chance of escaping,” Misbau said in an earlier interview.
He also described the hardship his family faced during the detention, including the deteriorating health of both mother and child due to lack of proper medical care.
“I tried everything possible to get a lawyer. Even when I finally got one, we could not secure her release immediately. I was traumatized as a father and husband, watching my family suffer this injustice,” he lamented.
Their eventual release follows sustained legal pressure and months of public outcry over their detention.
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