A federal high court has sentenced Faisal, son of Abdulrasheed Maina, former chairman of the defunct Pension Reform Taskforce Team, to 14years in prison.
In the judgment delivered on Thursday, Justice Okon Abang found Faisal guilty on a three-count money laundering charge preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Abang held that the anti-graft agency was able to establish that Faisal operated a fictitious bank account with the United Bank for Africa(UBA) , through which his father laundered N58.1m.
The court noted that the funds which were deposited into the account that was operated in the name of Alhaji Faisal Farm 2, was subsequently withdrawn by Faisal and his father between October 2013 and June 2019.
On count one, Faisal was sentenced to five years imprisonment, 14 years on count two, and another five-year sentence on count three. The sentence is to run concurrently starting from judgment day.
Justice Abang also ordered that Faisal, who had since June 24, 20202 failed to appear for his trial, be arrested anywhere he is found in Nigeria and remanded in any Correctional Service Centre to serve his jail term.
“The federal government shall arrest the convict anywhere found in the country and commit him to serve his jail term, if not found in the country, the FG shall legally or lawfully commence extradition proceedings against him,” the judge held.
