Two officers of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC,
Douglas William and Abba Ishaku, who were arraigned on October 17, 2010,
before an Abuja High Court presided over by Justice Abubakar Umar on a
four-count charge bordering on conspiracy and obtaining money under
false pretence were today sentenced to five years imprisonment without
an option of fine.
William and Ishaku were sentenced to two years each on counts one and two; and six months each on counts three and four.
The sentences are however to run concurrently.
The two officers were arrested in 2010 in a ‘sting operation’.
Until their arrest, the duo were stationed at the reception of the EFCC headquarters in Wuse, Abuja .
Trouble
started for the officers when they allegedly demanded for N100, 000
from Kullima Kachalla, a former Chairman of Bama Local Government in
Borno state in 2010, by posing as investigators of the EFCC.
They
were alleged to have asked Mr. Kachalla to send them the money in order
to bribe other investigators of the Commission to destroy a petition
written to the EFCC, which indicted him (the former chairman) for
alleged mismanagement of public funds.
During trial, the court was
told that Mr. Kachalla had alerted the EFCC of the action of the two
accused persons, necessitating an undercover operation, where an EFCC
officer, posing as Mr. Kachalla’s representative, arranged a meeting
with the accused.
Ishaku, second accused, allegedly called Mr.
Kachalla by telephone, asking him to bring the money to the Commission’s
office in Wuse, Abuja .
It was in the course of the receipt of the money that the two staff were arrested and subsequently arraigned.
In
his ruling, Justice Umar said because the convicts have suffered enough
humiliation, their sentence should start from the date of their
arraignment being October 18, 2010.
