The Kaduna Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, today October 4, 2021 secured the conviction and sentencing of one Hajiya Binta Balarabe Kubau to ten-year imprisonment before Justice M.T.M Aliyu of the Kaduna State High Court, Kaduna on a one count charge of cheating.
The charge had read: “that you Hajiya Binta Balarabe Kubau, sometime in August 2020 in Kaduna, within the judicial division of this honourable court, dishonestly induced one Yahaya Mohammed Idris to deliver to you the sum of N5,500,000( Five Million, Five Hundred Thousand Naira Only) for the purchase of a plot situate at No. C1 Block ‘PR’ on TPO 833A revised Kaduna Millennium City Mixed Commercial Layout, when you claimed to be the owner, which you knew to be false, and you thereby committed cheating contrary to Section 306 (a) and punishable under Section 307 of the Penal Code Laws of Kaduna State, 2017.”
After pleading guilty to the charge, the prosecution counsel, J. Musa, urged the court to enter the terms of a plea bargain agreement as the judgment of the court, while the defence counsel, Sule Shu’aibu asked the court to temper justice with mercy, as the defendant was remorseful.
Justice Aliyu, consequently convicted and sentenced the defendant to 10 years imprisonment, with an option of N200,000 as fine.
It was learnt that the defendant had already made a restitution of the sum of N5.5 million to the complainant.
Trouble started for Hajiya Kubau when Idris wrote a petition to the EFCC, claiming he paid her for a plot of land located at Millennium City Mixed Density Commercial Layout in Kaduna, but on presentation of the Certificate of Occupancy document to KASUPDA for building permit, he discovered that the document was fake.
