Court Sentences Lawyer to 18 Months In Prison Over Bribery in Borno

  • Lawyer Bags 18 Months without Option of Fine

The Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has secured an 18-months prison sentence of a lawyer, Zanna Dalhatu, without an option of fine before Justice Umaru Fadawu of the Borno State High Court, Maiduguri.

Dalhatu, who is a prosecuting counsel with the Federal State Ministry of Justice, Maiduguri Office, was arraigned on January 10, 2019, and pleaded not guilty to a one-count charge by the Commission.

The lawyer demanded N7million bribe and also attempted to obtain the said sum from Shuaibu Mohammed, the Chief Accountant of Borno State Road Maintenance Agency (BORMA), to facilitate the termination of a case against the staff of the agency. He was trailed and arrested in the processing of collecting the bribe sum.

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While the EFCC presented three witnesses to prove its case against him, the defence counsel, Zanna Hamza, opted for a “no-case submission,” which the court threw out and ordered that he opened his defence.

He, therefore, proceeded to appeal the judgement at the Appeal Court, Jos Division, and the Borno State High Court’s ruling on the no-case submission was upheld.

After the amendment of charges by the EFCC, he pleaded guilty and was convicted and sentenced accordingly.

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The amended charge reads: “That you, Zanna Dalhatu, while being a prosecuting counsel with the Federal Ministry of Justice, sometime in November 2018 in Maiduguri, Borno State within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, attempted to obtain the sum of N7,000,000.00 (Seven Million Naira) only, from one Shuaibu Mohammed, the Chief Accountant of Borno State Road Maintenance Agency (BORMA) as gratification to induce by illegal means, the team of investigators attached to Economic Governance Section (E.G) of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to terminate a criminal case pending with the said Commission against some staff of Borno State Road Maintenance Agency (BORMA) and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 116 of the Borno State Penal Code Laws Cap. 102 and punishable under the same section.”

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