Deputy Comptroller of prisons gets 7 years jail term

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has secured the conviction of a top prison officer brought before Justice J.J Majebi of the Kogi State High Court, Okene.  Justice J.J. Majebi convicted and sentenced Joseph Friday Idachaba, Deputy Comptroller of Prisons to seven years imprisonment for offences bordering on obtaining money by false pretence.

 

 

 

 The convict is also to pay the sum of N1, 403,114.09 (One Million, Four Hundred and Three Thousand, One Hundred and Fourteen Naira, Nine Kobo) in restitution to Nigeria Prison Service.

 

According to EFCC Head of Media and Publicity, Wilson Uwujaren the prison officer was "Arraigned in 2012 on a three-count charge, the convict was found guilty on count three of the charge by the trial judge, who, however, acquitted him on two remaining counts.

 

Count three of the charge reads: "That you Joseph Friday Idachaba (m) being a deputy comptroller of Nigeria Prisons Service, and Onoja D. Ruth (IP) also a staff of Nigeria Prison Service, sometime between July, 2012 to February 2013 at Lokoja, Kogi State did with intent to defraud obtained N1,403,114.09 only from the Federal Government of Nigeria via the Nigeria Prison Service with pretence that same amount was the payment of monthly salaries from Nigeria Prison Service, which amount was credited into the UBA Plc account No 2054047736 belonging to one Opia Mohammed Ugbade (now at large), through NIGSS electronic fund transfer (NEFT) between July 2012- to February 2013, that the said Opia Mohammed Ugbade’s name found in the Nigeria Prison Service electronic payroll  is not a staff of the Service which pretence you knew to be false and hereby committed an offence contrary to section 1(1) paragraphs A&B and punishable under section 1(3) of the Advance Free Fraud and Other Related Offences Act.

 

Source:  EFCC