Fiery preacher laid to rest at Tudor Muslim cemetery

Controversial Muslim cleric Sheikh Abubakar Shariff, alias Makaburi, was buried at midnight Wednesday.

This happened six hours after unknown assailants shot him dead outside Shanzu Law Courts in Mombasa.

In his many interviews with local and international media, Mr Shariff said he would be happy to die as a martyr.

“I will be killed anytime and would be happy to die as martyr. I am the only remaining one to die like Sheikh (Aboud) Rogo. People have been asking why it is not happening to me,” he once told this reporter.

He was killed alongside Mr Hafidh Bahero, 20, almost at sunset as they were waiting to be picked up to return home.

The two were shot dead a few seconds after stepping outside the court premises, where they had gone to attend the hearing of a case involving 29 young men arrested in a police raid at Masjid Musa mosque last month.

The bodies of Mr Shariff and Mr Bahero were picked up from the scene of the shooting more than one hour later and bundled into a police vehicle before being transferred to Bamburi police station.

SWORN AFFIDAVIT

At the police station, family members, including Makaburi’s mother, Nuru Ahmed, 87, and his younger sister Fatma Shariff, confirmed the body was of Mr Shariff and the mother sworn an affidavit to demand police hand over the body for burial.

Kisauni OCPD Richard Ngatia, Haki Africa Executive Director Hussein Khalid and lawyer Yusuf Abubakar witnessed the transfer of Mr Shariff's body to the family.

Mr Ngatia told journalists that the motive of the killing, which he termed a sad tragedy, was not known, adding that police have commenced investigations.

“They were shot at as they were waiting to be picked up by people in a pass-by car. He (Makaburi) was shot on the upper part of the body,” he told journalists at the police station.

The two bodies were transferred into a white Probox and taken to Masjid Shuhadaa, formerly Masjid Musa, for burial arrangements.

The two bodies were later placed on biers and a prayer for the dead conducted before being taken to Tudor Muslim cemetery for burial.

BURIED WITH BLOOD-SOAKED CLOTHES

Unlike normal Islamic burial rituals, which include washing the body (ghusul) and wrapping whole body in a white cloth (kafan), Sheikh Makaburi and Mr Bahero were buried with their blood-soaked clothes.

Hundreds of mourners carried the biers bearing the two bodies and walked over two kilometres to bury them.

Three people accompanying Makaburi when he was shot, among them Mr Mohamed Ali, told reporters how the killing happened and how he survived the sporadic bullets.

“I cannot explain. We just heard gunshots and everyone of us went down,” he added.

Mr Ali, who described Makaburi as his friend, said the attackers appeared to have emerged from the direction of Mombasa Island and returned towards the same direction after the shooting.

However, Mr Said Mohammed interjected saying he overheard people standing across the road from the gate leading to Shanzu Law Courts say that the attackers were inside a black vehicle that emerged from Mtwapa town.

“The vehicle was driven towards the gate and as a female guard was trying to open it, those inside rolled down the window and started firing at Makaburi as he stepped outside the gate. The attackers then just disappeared,” said an eyewitness who declined to be identified.

Mr Mohammed and Mr Ali said the prison wardens were not at the gate by that time but arrived on hearing gunshots.

“They blew whistles and arrived in dozens. They cordoned off the scene and told us not to get up,” added Mr Ali.