A persecution watchdog is speaking out about a shocking case surrounding a Nigerian woman who scored a surprising legal victory after reportedly being detained and beaten for converting from Islam to Christianity.

Brad Brandon, CEO of Across Nigeria, recently returned from an extended trip to Nigeria, where he saw and experienced firsthand the horrific persecution impacting so many believers there. He joined CBN News to share that experience and to reflect on Sarah, the Nigerian woman whose court case is making international headlines.

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“This is typically what happens,” he said of Sarah’s plight. “This happens, I mean … hundreds of times — thousands of times — a year in northern Nigeria. … 12 of the northern Nigerian states are controlled by Sharia law.”

Brandon said there’s a doctrine observed in many Muslim families there that a person who converts to Christianity has committed a crime – one that can sometimes be punishable by death. Sarah found herself in the crosshairs of this very dynamic.

“Your family can either kill you, or they can hire somebody to kill you, and that’s what’s going on in this case,” he said of Sarah. “So she converted to Christianity, and she felt threatened by her community and her family. She escaped that situation. Oftentimes, people will escape those situations with the help of other people.”

Sarah was in this camp as she found a Christian family to flee to after her siblings allegedly tried to force her into a marriage. The young woman stayed with this family, who helped rescue her and provide a safe haven; they were also reportedly involved in her conversion to Christianity.

As a result of their actions, the family also faces retribution.

“What they were accused of then is kidnapping,” he said. “And, again, all of these things, all of these details in this story, you could plug them into any other story. It’s the same thing that happens anywhere else.”

While a judge recently ruled in Sarah’s favor, deciding her rights were impeded when she was reportedly arrested, beaten, and mistreated for her conversion to Christianity, the family who helped her continues to face legal challenges.

Watch Brandon discuss the details of this shocking case:

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