Tobias Sylvester
Borno State High Court has sentenced a man identified as Allen Abel to 125 years’ imprisonment for fraudulently obtaining food items valued at N12,879,800 that was meant for school feeding scheme under the Social Intervention Programme (SIP) of the Federal Government.
Abel was said to have defrauded a company, Lele Foresight Construction Company, of the said money under the pretext of executing a contract for the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development.
The convict was arraigned before Justice Aisha Kumaliya on Thursday, July 2, 2020, alongside Suleiman Adamu, Usman Adamu, and Kingsley Madubuagu by the Maiduguri zonal office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Abel pleaded guilty to the 20-count charge that borders on forgery, possession of false documents, impersonation, and obtaining by false pretense.
During the sentencing on Wednesday, September 30, 2020, Justice Kumaliya sentenced Abel to seven years’ imprisonment each on count one to six and count nine without an option of fine.
The convict was also handed five years’ imprisonment on each of count seven, eight and 11 to 20 without an option of fine. All sentences are to run consecutively.
The court also ordered Abel to return the sum of N12,110,000 to Lele Foresight Construction Company and the sum of N769,800 to HIE Global Investment Limited.
Similarly, Oyo State High Court had sentenced a former employee of First Bank of Nigeria, Mrs. Oreoluwa Adesakin, to 98 years in prison for N49 million, and additional $368,203 belonging to her employer.
