Governor Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri granted a full pardon to Sunday Jackson on Tuesday, freeing the farmer who endured over a decade behind bars after he killed a herdsman in self-defense.
Jackson, a Christian from Demsa Local Government Area, faced attack in 2015 while tending his farm in Codonti Forest.
A Fulani herdsman, Buba Ardo Bawuro, trespassed with cattle and stabbed Jackson multiple times when confronted.
Jackson disarmed his assailant and delivered a fatal blow to survive.
Authorities charged Jackson with culpable homicide. Courts convicted him, ruling he should have fled rather than retaliate.
The Supreme Court upheld the death sentence in March 2025, despite a dissenting justice who highlighted clear self-defense and urged clemency.
Human rights groups, Christian leaders from CAN and PFN, and international advocates rallied for Jackson.
Even the victim’s family pleaded for mercy.
U.S. Congressman Riley Moore raised the case in hearings on religious persecution in Nigeria.
Fintiri exercised his constitutional prerogative of mercy, citing Jackson’s good conduct and recommendations from the state advisory council.
The governor pardoned two other inmates and remitted sentences for five more as part of Christmas celebrations.
Advocates celebrated the decision as a correction of judicial injustice amid Nigeria’s farmer-herder clashes.
Meanwhile, Jackson prepares to reunite with family, including a daughter he has never met.
Supporters hail the pardon as a triumph of advocacy and executive mercy.
The move underscores ongoing tensions over land rights and self-defense in rural Nigeria, where farmers frequently face armed intruders.
