A high court sitting in Yola, presided by Justice Nathan Musa on Thursday jailed two Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, staff for 42 years for collecting N362million bribe from former Minister of Petroleum, Diezani Allison-Madueke, in the build-up to the 2015 general elections.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, had brought the case against Ibrahim Umar, Sahabo Iya Hamman, both staff of INEC in Adamawa State as well as the former Minister of Petroleum for conspiring to defraud the federal government with the intent to compromise the 2015 general elections.
READ ALSO: Mourinho accepts 12-month prison sentence for tax fraud
In his judgment, Justice Musa said the court delivered the verdict after due diligence established a conspiracy between the persons, as such he convicted and sentenced the two INEC staff to seven years each on the three counts brought against them by the EFCC.
The judge said he was giving a lenient sentence since the accused were first-term offenders adding that the sentence would run concurrently.
“The offence has a mandatory provision. I’m constrained by the law. They shall be sentenced to seven years imprisonment without the option of fine.
”However in view of plea to temper justice with mercy, I will allow the sentence to run concurrently,” he said.
