Justice Umaru Fadawu of the Borno State High Court, Maiduguri, has handed down a 10-year prison sentence to Aisha Alkali Wakil, popularly known as Mama Boko Haram, along with two accomplices, Tahiru Saidu Daura and Prince Lawal Soyade. The trio was found guilty of a N40 million fraud scheme.
The conviction follows their arraignment by the Maiduguri Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on March 5, 2020. The charges leveled against them included conspiracy and obtaining money by pretense.
According to the court documents, the defendants, who held key positions at Complete Care and Aid Foundation, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), allegedly deceived Bashir Abubakar, CEO of Duty Free Shop Ltd, into parting with N40 million under the guise of executing a contract for the supply of five X-ray Machines 1900 with Solar Energy. However, investigations revealed that the contract was fictitious, and the promised machines were never delivered.
Despite pleading not guilty, the defendants could not refute the evidence presented by the prosecution counsel, A.I Arogha, who called upon four witnesses and submitted seventeen exhibits before the court.
Justice Fadawu, in delivering the verdict, pronounced a concurrent 10-year imprisonment for each count of conspiracy and obtaining by pretense. Additionally, the defendants were ordered to jointly and severally refund the sum of N40 million to Bashir Abubakar, the aggrieved party.
“The prison term shall run concurrently on the expiration of all prison terms imposed on the convicts by any court,” stated Justice Fadawu.
The conviction stemmed from a complaint by Bashir Abubakar, who alleged that the defendants defrauded him through a fabricated contract, promising to supply X-ray Machines 1900 with Solar Energy to their NGO. However, no such transaction took place, leaving Abubakar without recourse.
