By The Supreme Court of Nigeria, on Friday, upheld the conviction of former lawmaker, Farouk Lawan over the $3 million bribery charges preferred against him by the Federal Government.
Stonix News reports that Lawan was the chairman of the House of Representatives Ad hoc Committee probing the multi-billion naira petrol subsidy fraud in 2012.
The loquacious lawmaker was accused of demanding $3 million from Femi Otedola to remove Zenon Petroleum and Gas Ltd (Otedola’s former company) from the list of oil companies allegedly involved in the petrol subsidy fraud in 2012.
Lawan, who was arraigned on a seven-count bribery allegations by the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), was alleged to have collected a $500,000 bribe from Otedola.
On June 22, 2021, Angela Otaluka, judge of a Federal Capital Territory High Court in Apo, convicted the accused on all three-count charges and sentenced him to seven years imprisonment.
Delivering the judgement in the appeal filed by the convict, the court discharged and acquitted the former lawmaker on two out of the three counts on which he was convicted.
But ruling on the Appeal filed by the Appellant (Federal Government) at the Supreme Court, Justice Tijani Abubakar, who read the judgement of the Panel prepared by Justice John Okoro, upheld the judgement of the Appeal court on the same matter.
The apex court declared that the Appeal was devoid of merit and was struck out.
With this, the conviction of the former Lawmaker has been upheld by the Supreme Court.
Counsel to the Respondent, the Federal Government, Aderonke Imana, described the judgement of the apex court as a wel- deserved one.
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