Court Jails EFCC Operative For Stealing Exhibits

February 20, 2020

A former employee of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Hussaini Abubakar, was on Thursday convicted and sentenced by a Rivers State High Court sitting in Port-Harcourt for stealing seized items from his employer.

Justice Christopher Amadi pronounced the convict guilty of stealing, which is contrary to Section 383 (1) and punishable under Section 390 of the Criminal Code CAP 37 vol. II Laws of Rives State of Nigeria, 1999.

The convict was arraigned by his employer, the EFCC, Port Harcourt Zonal Office on a three-count charge of stealing.

Count One of the charge reads: “That you,Hussaina Abubakar, in 2017 at Port Harcourt in the Port Harcourt Judicial Division did fraudulently steal an exhibit from the Forensic Section of Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC, an exhibit which you knew was recovered in the course of investigation to wit: One Lenevo S60-A (dual sim) with serial number: HBOGOHAQ with IME slot number: 1-866059026043140, worth N18,000 (Eighteen Thousand Naira), belonging to one Chuku Nelson Nyegam and thereby committed an offence.”

The convict pleaded guilty to all the charges, prompting prosecuting counsel, Nathaniel Dodo to urge the court to convict and sentence him accordingly.

But his counsel, Mohammed Suleiman urged the court to temper justice with mercy, stating that the convict is a first time offender with no previous conviction.

Suleiman also urged the court to taking into consideration that the defendant is an orphan, a married man, a father of a 15-months baby and a bread winner for his family.

Justice Amadi, after listened to the submissions of the prosecutor and defence counsel, sentenced him to one year imprisonment.

The judge, however, offered the convict an option of N150,000 fine, in lieu of the jail term.