Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah 29636 — Reports on the qasamah

Abu Ishaq said that al-Harith bin al-Azma' stated: A man was found dead in Yemen, between the tribes of Wadi'ah and Arhab. The governor of Sayyiduna Umar bin al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) wrote to him about it, and Umar wrote back to him: Measure the distance between the two tribes; whichever of them this slain man is nearer to, seize them. The narrator said: They measured and found the slain man nearer to the tribe of Wadi'ah. The narrator said: So the governor seized our tribesmen, made us responsible for payment and made us swear. We said: "O Commander of the Believers, will you make us swear and also make us pay the fine?" He said: "Yes." The narrator said: So fifty men among us swore by Allah: We did not kill, nor do we know the killer.