A Magistrates’ Court in Wuse on Thursday sentenced a 34-year-old welder, Abdulganiyu Abdulazeez, for abducting and defrauding an applicant of N522,000.
The police charged Abdulazeez alongside a 32-year-old hair stylist, Tosin Busayo, with criminal conspiracy, abduction, extortion, criminal breach of trust and cheating.
Abdulazeez pleaded guilty and begged the court for leniency, but Busayo pleaded not guilty.
Delivering judgment, Magistrate Aminu Eri sentenced Abdulazeez following his guilty plea to one year imprisonment without an option of fine.
Eri also ordered him to pay N200,000 as compensation to the victim.
The magistrate admitted Busayo to bail in the sum of N300, 000 with one surety in like sum.
Eri ordered that the surety must reside within the court’s jurisdiction.
He adjourned the case until November 18 for hearing
Earlier, the prosecution counsel, Seidu Jibrin, told the court that on August 29, a Rapid Response Squad team attached to the Kabusa Police Station arrested Abdulazeez and Bola Areo of ECWA II, Kabusa village, Abuja.
He told the court that they were arrested for public disturbance.
Jibrin said the convict and Busayo criminally deceived and abducted Judith Elechi.
He also said the convict and Busayo collected N522,000 from Elechi, with a promise to get her a job in Libya.
The offence, he said, contravened the provisions of sections 97,312 322, 277 and 292 of the Penal Code.