Federal High Court in Gombe has sentenced two police officers and an immigration officer to seven years in prison each for defrauding job seekers of N1.6 million.
Justice T.G. Ringin delivered the judgment on Thursday, convicting police officers Yusuf AbdulKarim Bature and Musa Philip, and immigration officer Nasiru Mohammed, after they pleaded guilty to charges of obtaining money under false pretenses.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission accused the convicts of collecting money from job seekers in 2022 under the pretense of securing them employment in the Nigerian Police Force and the Immigration Service.
According to the charges, Bature and Philip collected N970,000 from one Asabe Hamed, while Mohammed collected N670,000 from Abdul Rahman Abubakar and Akwalo Adamu.
The charge against Mohammed read, “That you, Nasiru Mohammed, sometime in 2022 in Gombe, within the jurisdiction of this honorable court, while being a staff of the Nigerian Immigration Service, did falsely obtain the sum of Six Hundred and Seventy Thousand Naira (N670,000) under the false pretense of securing jobs with the Nigerian Immigration Service, which you knew to be false.”
Prosecutor Tortema Joshua requested the court to sentence the defendants. However, defense lawyers Babangida Mohammed and K.K. Jomoh pleaded for leniency, citing the defendants’ remorse and status as first-time offenders.
Justice Ringin sentenced each convict to seven years in prison but offered an alternative fine of N50,000 each. He also ordered the convicts to repay the N1.6 million to their victims and sign an undertaking to maintain good behavior.
The EFCC revealed that the case began on February 8, 2024, when victims petitioned the agency, alleging that the convicts collected the money but neither provided the promised jobs nor returned the funds.
