Mr. Umaru Farook, an active deputy director of the Niger State Ministry of Land Transportation, was sentenced to seven years in prison by the Niger State High Court in Minna for asking and taking N11 million from a contractor.
Farook had previously been brought before Hon. Justice Abdullahi Mikail by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Commission, ICPC, according to a statement released on Friday by ICPC spokeswoman Azuka Ogugua.
The defendant was initially charged in July 2020 with seven counts related to self-gratification and the conferral of illicit advantage, to which he entered a not guilty plea, setting the stage for the protracted trial.
In 2016, while serving as the Deputy Director of Land Transport for the Niger State Ministry of Land Transportation, Farook allegedly received N11,000,000 as a kickback from a contractor in exchange for the award of a contract for the registration of auto mechanic workshops, registration of auto spare parts dealers, registration of motorcycle and tricycle dealers, and registration of colour code certification for commercial transportation. This information was provided to the court by ICPC prosecutor Osuobeni Akpos.
The prosecution told the court how the defendant had received money from one Oyabambi Bolaji Stephen on behalf of Boyabam Services Global Limited in exchange for a contract on multiple occasions totaling N11 million, sometimes in chunks of N100,000, N500,000, and N400,000.
The court was also told that the defendant’s actions broke Sections 8 and 19 of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Act of 2000.
The trial judge found the defendant guilty on each of the seven counts, and after finding the prosecution’s case beyond a reasonable doubt, he sentenced him to seven years in jail for counts one through six and five years for count seven. The sentences must all flow together.
