The long drawn court battle between Abdulrasheed Maina, Chairman, defunct Pension Reformed Task Team (PRTT) and EFCC over pension fraud seem to have finally come to an end as a Federal High Court, Abuja, on Monday, convicted and sentenced him to 8 years imprisonment.
Justice Okon Abang, in his judgment, held that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had proven the essential ingredients of all the 12 counts preferred against Maina beyond reasonable doubt in the money laundering suit.
Delivering the judgment, the judge sentenced the ex-pension boss to three years in count one, five years in count two, eight years in count three, eight years in count four, two years in count five, five years in count six, and eight years in count seven.
Abang, who also sentenced Maina to three years in count eight, five years in count nine, eight years in count 10, three years in count 11 and three years in count 12, ordered that the terms of imprisonment shall run concurrently beginning from Oct. 25, 2019, being the date he was arraigned.
Justice Abang said Maina, who was the chairman of the pension team at the time pension money was stolen, was found guilty in all the counts and was accordingly convicted.
“In my view, it is pensioners’ funds the 1st defendant (Maina) stole, and some of the pensioners died out of frustration,” he said.
He said the anti-corruption agency had been able to establish that Maina opened two anonymous accounts in United Bank of Africa (UBA) and five accounts in Fidelity Bank Plc to perpetrate his unlawful act.
Abang noted that the EFCC witness who testified in the course of the case pointed out that Maina, whose salary as a civil servant was N256, 000, couldn’t have had such money running into billions in his accounts even if he saved all his salaries in his 35 years in service, stating “that the money formed part of unlawful activities to which the 1st defendant reasonably ought to have known.”
He said the EFCC was able to nail Maina, using his sister-in-law, who is a UBA staff; his blood sister, a civil servant and younger brother, who was a Fidelity Bank staff, among the prosecution witnesses.
The judge said that Maina could not defend himself on the evidence given by the fifth prosecution witness that he (Maina) gave him (witness) about 1.4 million dollars in cash to purchase a property valued at N150 million located at Life Camp, Abuja.
Drama outside Court premises as EFCC operatives move to rearrest Maina after conviction
There was a mild drama at the premises of the Federal High Court, Abuja, on Monday, after Abdulrasheed Maina, former Chairman, Pension Reformed Task Team (PRTT), was convicted and sentenced to eight years imprisonment.
Justice Okon Abang, the presiding judge in the money laundering suit filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against Maina, had earlier handed down a cumulative eight-year imprisonment to the ex-pension boss.
Abang ordered that the terms of imprisonment for all the 12 counts shall run concurrently from Oct. 25, 2019, being the date Maina was arraigned before the court.
The judge, who ruled that Maina must refund money running over a billion naira to the Federal Government coffers, among others, also ordered that the companies used in the unlawful act be winded up.
However, when the officers of the Kuje Correctional Centre were taking Maina out of the court premises amidst tight security, some officers of the EFCC drove into the court premises with two vehicles, blocking the prison Hilux van that was about to convey the ex-pension boss to the correctional centre.
The development led to a hot arguments between the two opposing personnel as they cork their rifles in defence of their stand.
However, the prison officers stood their ground, refusing to allow the EFCC operatives, some of who came in police uniform, to whisk Maina away.
A prison officer, who spoke to NAN anonymously shortly after the pandemonium, said the EFCC operatives had come in the name of rearresting Maina for another charge.
“They said they have a warrant to rearrest him after he was just convicted.
“Our own stand is that the court just convicted him and if they need to rearrest him, they should come through the court.
“The court will give the directive for us to obey,” the officer said.
