By Ismail Auwal
A close friend of Abdulmalik Mohammed Tanko, the school proprietor who confessed to the abduction and murder of the 5-year-old Kano girl Haneefa Abubakar was a desperado who could do anything for money according to his friend.
“I knew that his extreme love of money would land him in the trouble one day,” said Tanko’s friend who preferred anonymity.
The friend who recalled how they started a photocopy business together at Kano State Polytechnic, lamented that Tanko “ended up selling the container without giving me a Kobo out of the money.”
SAHELIAN TIMES also gathered that Tanko was once dismissed from a private school, Ete Inoh, over misappropriating a sum close to N1,000,000 belonging to the school.
“He was fired from the school a few years ago for squandering nearly N1,000,000 that belonged to the school management,” a former teacher at the school told our reporter.
The suspected kidnapper was born and raised in Zirin Gaza in Tudun Wada community.
Tudun Wada is a political ward located in Nassarawa Local Government of Kano State.
However, when contacted, a childhood friend, Isa Pindar, stated that they grew up together from their earlier days until the recent “unfortunate twist of events.”
“Abdulmalik was born and raised in Tudun Wada before his parents relocated to Tudun Murtala, which is an extension of this community (Tudun Wada).”
Tanko, according to Pindar, also chose to marry and settle at Tudun Murtala Quarters.
“He has a very good relationship with people; you will rarely see him arguing with anyone in this community. It is indeed very frightening and unfortunate,” Pinder said.
He also told our reporter that Tanko has a Higher National Diploma from Kano School of Management Studies before starting his teaching carrier.
