The Borno State High Court, sitting in Maiduguri, on Wednesday convicted and sentenced Hajiya Aisha Alkali Wakil to 10 years imprisonment for conspiracy, cheating and obtaining N120,500,000 by false pretence.
Justice Aisha Kumaliya sentenced her alongside two others, Alhaji Tahiru Saidu Daura and Prince Lawal Shoyade.
This was the third time in as many months that Wakil, who is also known as Mama Boko Haram’, and the others were being sentenced following their arraignment by the Maiduguri Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Wednesday, December 8, 2021, on a five-count amended charge.
Count two of the charge reads: ”That you, Aisha Alkali Wakil, Tahiru Alhaji Saidu Daura, Prince Lawal Shoyade, whilst being Chief Executive Officer, Programme Manager and Country Director respectively of Complete Care and Aid Foundation (Non-Government Organization) and Saidu Mukhtar (now at large) sometime in June, 2018 at Maiduguri, Borno State, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court with intent to defraud obtained the sum of N45,000,000.00 (Forty Five Million Naira) from one Mohammed Umar Mohammed of Nyeuro International Limited under the false pretence of executing a purported contract of supply, installation and servicing of 10 pieces of Chison 600A, 2009 version deluxe ultrasound system, which you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1) (b) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006 and Punishable under Section 1 (3) of the same Act”.
Count four of the charge reads: ”That you, Aisha Alkali Wakil, Tahiru Alhaji Saidu Daura, Prince Lawal Shoyade, whilst being Chief Executive Officer, Programme Manager and Country Director respectively of Complete Care and Aid Foundation (Non-Governmental Organisation) and Saidu Mukhtar (at large), sometime between June and August 2018 at Maiduguri, Borno State, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did conspire to do illegal act to wit; cheating by obtaining 3,000 (Three Thousand) bags of 50kg white beans worth N65,000,000.00 (Sixty-Five Million Naira) from one Mohammed Umar Mohammed of Nyeuro International Limited under the pretence of executing a purported contract of supply of the said beans which you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 96 (a) and punishable under Section 97 of the Borno State Penal Code Laws Cap 102.”
The defendants had pleaded “not guilty” to the charges.
In the course of the trial, the prosecuting counsel, Mukhtar Ali Ahmed, called seven witnesses, including Shehu Usman, an investigator with the EFCC, who testified that “Complete and Aid Care Foundation (Non-Governmental Organisation) was ran as a Ponzi scheme, by robbing Peter to pay Paul.”
After the prosecution closed its case on March 16, 2020, the defendants chose to file a no-case submission, which was dismissed by the court on September 27, 2021, and the defendants were ordered to open their case.
Delivering judgment on Wednesday, Justice Kumaliya held that the prosecution proved its case against the defendants beyond reasonable doubt.
She said: “The court hereby finds you, Aisha Alkali Wakil, Tahiru Alhaji Saidu Daura, Prince Lawal Shoyade guilty and convicted you as charged.”
The judge sentenced them on the first count to seven years imprisonment and ten years on the second count. On the third count, she sentenced them to five years imprisonment.
The sentences are to run concurrently, she ruled.
The judge also ordered the convicts to jointly restitute the sum of N66 million to the nominal complainant or serve an additional seven years jail term each.
