Mr. Abdulrasheed Maina, the former Chairman of the disbanded Pension Reform Task Team, PRTT, was convicted and sentenced to eight years in jail for money laundering by the Federal High Court in Abuja yesterday.
Maina was found guilty on all 12 counts brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, against him and his company, Common Input Property and Investment Limited, in a judgment handed by Justice Okon Abang.
It was decided that the anti-corruption agency had established beyond a reasonable doubt the fundamental elements of the charges.
The sentence, according to Justice Abang, will run consecutively, beginning on October 25, 2019, the date the defendants were arraigned.
He ordered Maina and his company to surrender nearly N2.1 billion in bank accounts, as well as $223, 396, 30 to the Federal Government, before ordering the company to be wound up.
The confiscated funds must be remitted to the federal government within 90 days, according to the court.
It also ordered the forfeiture of Maina’s two prized residences in Abuja’s Lifecamp and Jabi districts to the government, as well as the sale of a bulletproof automobile and a BMW 5 series exotic car discovered in the convict’s possession.
Justice Abang stressed that though the law made provision for a maximum sentence of 14 years for the offense that was committed by the defendants, he said he was moved by Maina’s plea for mercy.
Meanwhile, drama ensued shortly after the judgment, as plain-clothed officials of the EFCC, attempted to re-arrest the convicted former pension boss within the court premises.
The EFCC agents had immediately officials of the Nigerian Prisons Service, were leading Maina out of the court, used both a Hilux and a White Hiace Bus, to block the vehicle meant to convey the convict to prison.
Their move to grab Maina was vehemently resisted by armed officials of the Nigerian Prisons Service.
After the clash that lasted over 30mins, the EFCC operatives backed down and allowed Maina to be taken away by officials from Kuje Prison.
Though there is another criminal case pending against Maina before a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, it was, however not clear why the EFCC wanted to take him into its custody.
Meanwhile, earlier in his judgment, Justice Abang held that EFCC successfully discharged the evidential burden placed on it by the law, noting that the defendants failed to offer any concrete defense to the charge.
He held that EFCC adduced sufficient evidence that was “unchallenged.”
Justice Abang said there was uncontroverted evidence that Maina had at a period that pension funds were stolen, paid in over N1.5 million, N500 million, and N300 million into five bank accounts traced to him.
He said there was no explanation from the 1st Defendant about where the money, which was above his legitimate earnings, came from.
The trial judge held that the defendant, whose monthly salary was about N250, 000, could not have been able to save over a N2billion within the 30 days the deposits were made.
“Judgement is hereby entered in favor of the prosecution and the Defendant is accordingly convicted,” he held.
At this juncture, Maina’s lawyer, Mr. Olusegun Jolawon, SAN, begged the court for leniency.
“I beg my lord to give the defendant a second chance by not bringing down the full weight of the law. The defendant made some mistakes and he is very remorseful about them. He is the breadwinner of both his nuclear and extended family.
“Moreover, there is documentary evidence that he is seriously sick. Nobody is immune to illness,” the defense lawyer added.
Similarly, Maina, while addressing the court himself, apologized for his past conduct.
He said: “My lord, I want to apologize for anything I may have done, with or without my intention. It was all adduced to me. I was never opportune to be in the witness box, if not, you would have heard a lot of things.”
Maina said he had three different tumors in his body and would need to undergo a medical operation urgently.
After he had listened to the Allocutus (plea for mercy) by both Maina and his lawyer, Justice Abang said the facts of the case were “sordid, immoral and dirty.”
He said: “Facts of this case portray the moral decadence of the society we live in, having considered the monumental fraud, about how pensioners’ funds were stolen.
“It is a clear case that the convict is inhuman, heartless, and had no compassion for the pensioners. Some of them have suffered, others have died while waiting to get their reward on earth.
“Whereas the convict was feeding fat from their sweat in faraway Dubai, buying properties, driving bulletproof cars that were beyond his legitimate earnings.
“Abnormal situation requires drastic action to send a message to those that believe in dishonesty, to have a rethink.’’
The court maintained that the Federal Government ought to have withdrawn the operating licenses of the two banks it noted connived with the convict to steal pension funds to the tune of over N2.1 billion.
EFCC had in the charge marked FHC/ABJ/CR/256/2019, alleged that Maina used a bank account operated by his firm and laundered funds, part of which he used to acquire landed properties in Abuja.
It told the court that the 1st Defendant (Maina) used fictitious names to open and operate various bank accounts, as well as recruited his relatives that were bankers to operate fake bank accounts through which illicit funds were channeled.
The EFCC alleged that Maina induced staff of two banks to open accounts for him, without conducting the requisite due diligence to verify the identity of the beneficial owner.
The Prosecution maintained that Maina and his company, committed criminal offenses, punishable under sections 11(2) (a), 15(3), and 16(2) (c) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, and also acted in breach of the Advance Fee Fraud Act.
Maina’son, Faisal, had earlier been sentenced to 24 years imprisonment by a Federal High Court in Abuja for fraud.
Ada Peter
