NAN-H-64
Fine
Abuja, Nov. 22, 2016 (NAN) A Wuse Zone 2 Chief Magistrate’s Court on Tuesday in Abuja fined nine men N15,000 each for attempting to steal.
The defendants are Nasiru Isa of Wuse 2, Abubakar Suleiman of Area 11, Aliyu Yakima of Maitama, Abdulsalam Ado of Maitama all of Abuja and Hassan Aliyu of Kaduna.
Others are Sani Yusuf of Gwagwa, Murtala Mohammed and Ibrahim Babangida both of Mpape and Reuben Shedrack of Jikwoyi, all in Abuja.
The defendants are arraigned on a five-count-charge of criminal conspiracy, criminal trespass, house breaking, mischief and attempting to commit an offence with intent to steal.
The Senior Magistrate, Teribo Jim, who handed down the judgment, gave the defendants a N15,000 fine each after they pleaded guilty.
He also warned them to desist from committing crime and that he fined them because they had been in police custody since their arrest in September.
Earlier, the prosecutor, Asa Oyeyemi, told the court that the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission wrote a petition to the lnspector General of Police on Sept. 16 on the incident.
Oyeyemi said that the defendants conspired among themselves and broke into the confiscated house of the former Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh.
He said that the defendants broke into the sealed house at Ahmadu Bello Way at Garki, Abuja, with the intention to steal.
Oyeyemi said that the offences contravened Sections 97, 343, 347, 327 and 97 of the Penal Code.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the court also fined Rueben Shedrack N7,000 separately, for impersonating an EFCC director.
Shedrack, was earlier arraigned with the eight defendants for breaking into the sealed house.
The defendant was arraigned on one-count charge of impersonation to which he pleaded guilty.
The prosecutor said that the defendant was deceiving people that he was a director at the EFCC.
He said that the offence contravened section 132 of the Penal Code. (NAN)
UMD/MNA/IS
Edited by Maureen Atuonwu/Ismail Abdulaziz
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