30th March, 2023
By Uche Bibilari
A Chief Magistrates’ Court in Gwagwalada, FCT, has sentenced two rustlers, Buba Bello and Abubakar Umar to five years imprisonment each with hard labour for stealing 14 cows worth N2.5 million.
The police charged Bello, 30, and Umar, 26 with criminal conspiracy, intimidation, trespass, theft and extortion.
Chief Magistrate Munir Sani convicted and sentenced the defendants after they pleaded guilty to the charges and begged for leniency.
Sani sentenced the convicts to one year in imprisonment for each offence without an option of a fine.
He also ordered the convicts to pay compensation of N165,000 to the nominal complainants.
Earlier, the Prosecution Counsel, Abdullahi Tanko told the court that the matter was reported on Feb. 3, at Gwagwalada Police Station, by Mr Muhamodu Bello and Usman Dikko, of Dukpa Village Gwagwalada, Abuja.
Tanko said that on Jan. 21 the convicts and Umar now at large conspired, trespassed into Bello (first complainant)’s cattle farm and stole 14 cattle worth N2.5 million.
He said that the convicts later called and demanded N250,000 from him before they would release the cattle to him.
He said that the first complainant sent N150,000 to the convicts through a Point of Sale (POS) account number which they sent to him.
Tanko said that the convicts later released 11 cattle and sold three which were valued at N1.1 million to an unknown person for N250,000 and converted the money to their own personal use.
He said that the convicts threatened to kill Dikko (second complainant) if he dare search for them.
The prosecutor said that the offence contravened the provisions of sections 97, 397, 342, 287 and 292 of the Penal Code.
According to Section 287, whoever commits theft shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to five years or with a fine or both.
(NAN)