A man was sentenced to death in Nigeria via Zoom app, inviting backlash

A man in Nigeria was sentenced to death via the video conferencing app Zoom this week, sparking criticism from human rights groups.

The court held the session via Zoom to comply with the state's social distancing guidelines to curb coronavirus.

Olalekan Hameed was found guilty of murdering his mother's employer in 2018, and was sentenced to death by hanging at a virtual court hearing on Monday. He had, however, denied the charges.

Hameed appeared remotely from prison via Zoom, along with his lawyer and prosecutors who also joined the hearing remotely.

To this end, Amnesty International Nigeria Director Osai Ojigho slammed the country's use of the death penalty and questioned why Monday's hearing couldn't be delayed.

Amnesty International is now calling for the the death penalty to be abolished in Nigeria, where there are nearly 3,000 people on death row.