Christopher Oji 

Justice Umaru Fadawu of the Borno State High Court has sentenced and convicted an ex- Borno State judiciary officer, Ramat Mohammed (alias Gaddafi), to 16 years imprisonment on a-two count amended charge for defrauding 194 widows to the tune of N781, 800.00.

The Maiduguri zonal office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arraigned the convict before Justice Umaru Fadawu of the Borno State High Court on two- count charges bordering on obtaining by false pretence and Advance Fee Fraud and other fraud related offences.

The convict forged and sold a Food Collection Card, in the name of a non- governmental organization (NGO), to his victims, 194 widows, to the tune of N781, 800, 000 and failed to deliver food items to them, leading to his arrest and arraignment in court.

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Count one of the charge read: “That you, Ramat Mohammed (alias Gaddafi), sometime in December, 2018 at Maiduguri, Borno State within the jurisdiction of this honourable court with intent to defraud, obtained the gross sum of N520,000  from 40 women (mostly widows) of Fissabi-lillah Islamic School, under the false pretence that the entire sum represent payments for registration/eligibility for a programme by an NGO, Action Against Hunger (AAH) at Auno Town of Konduga LGA, Borno State, which payment will entitle the said women to be issued a special card for various food items, which you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1) (a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.”

After the charge was read to the convict, he pleaded guilty to the charges.

Justice Fadawu sentenced him to eight years imprisonment on count one and another eight years on count two and ordered that the prison terms should run concurrently.