13th February, 2024
By Paul Dada
Aisha Wakili popularly known as Mama Boko Haram, Tahiru Daura and Lawal Soyade, have been sentenced to 10 years imprisonment by Justice Umaru Fadawu of the Borno State High Court, sitting in Maiduguri, for fraud
This would be the fourth time in two years that the alleged hostage negotiator would be jailed for a crime of fraud. In December, 2022, she was sentenced to 10 years imprisonment by Justice Aisha Kumaliya for conspiracy, cheating and obtaining N120.5 million by false pretence.
In September of the same year, the same judge sentenced her alongside her co-convicts for N15 million fraud. Earlier in June of 2022, she and her co-convicts were jailed for fraud involving N71.4 million.
For the latest fraud case, a statement by the Head of Media and Publicity of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Dele Oyewale, released late on Monday night, said, “The defendants were jailed upon being arraigned by the Maiduguri Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Thursday, March 5, 2020, on a two count charge bordering on conspiracy and obtaining by false pretence to the tune of N40m”.
The Count two of the charge had read: “That you Aisha Alkali Wakil, Tahiru Alhaji Saidu Daura, and Prince Lawal Soyade whilst being the Chief Executive Officer, Programme Manager, and Country Director respectively of Complete Care and Aid Foundation, (a Non-Governmental Organisation) and Saidu Mukhtar (at large) sometime in Maiduguri, Borno State within the jurisdiction of this honourable court did with intent to defraud obtained the sum of N40m from one Bashir Abubakar, the Chief Executive Officer of Duty-Free Shop Ltd under the false pretence of executing a purported contract for the supply of five X-ray Machines 1900 with Solar Energy 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.”
But the defendants however pleaded “not guilty” But the statement said the court “convicted and sentenced them to 10 years imprisonment for the offence of conspiracy. The court further sentenced the defendants to 10 years imprisonment for the offence of obtaining by false pretence and ordered them to jointly and severally pay the sum of N40m to Bashir Muhammad.
“The prison term shall run concurrently on the expiration of all prison terms imposed on the convicts by any court.”