A Federal Capital Territory High Court in Gwagwalada, Abuja, has sentenced Ramat Mba, a mother of five, to one year imprisonment for her involvement in an employment scam and forgery.
According to The PUNCH, the court found her guilty of cheating, fraud, and forgery, contrary to the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act 2000 and the Penal Code Cap 89 laws of Northern Nigeria.
The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission had arraigned Mba in June 2022 on a 5-count.
During the trial, the commission presented evidence that Mba collected N4.5 million from several job seekers, promising to secure jobs for them with the ICPC and National Air Space Research and Development Agency.
She also forged the signature of the late Abba Kyari, the Chief of Staff to former President Muhammadu Buhari, on a letter requesting the recruitment of three individuals by the ICPC.
The court convicted Mba on four counts and sentenced her to six months imprisonment or a fine of N100,000 on each count.
On the fifth count, which borders on forgery, she was sentenced to one year imprisonment or a fine of N150,000.
The presiding judge, Justice Ibrahim Muhammad, considered Mba’s status as a first-time offender and a mother when determining the sentence.
The ICPC spokesperson, Demola Bakare, confirmed the development in a statement on Friday.
Bakare revealed, “The trial judge, Justice Muhammad, in his judgment on May 9, 2024, convicted the mother of five children on counts 1, 2, 3 and 5 that border on cheating and forgery, while she was discharged on count 4 which borders on felony.
“Justice Muhammad, during the sentencing on Thursday, pronounced a six-month jail term or N100,000 option of fine on counts 1, 2 and 3 on the convict.
“The presiding judge, who stressed the status of the convict as a first-time offender and a mother, also sentenced her to one-year imprisonment or N150,000 option on fine on count 5 which borders on forgery.”
