The Supreme Court has fixed April 22 for final judgment in an appeal filed by a former Federal Director of Pension, John Yusuf challenging his six years imprisonment by the Court of Appeal.
The former Pension Director who has been convicted twice is also contesting an order of the Court of Appeal, Abuja that he should refund to the federal government N22.9Bn he admitted to have been diverted for personal use.
Justice Mohammed Musa Dattijo who led a 5-man panel of Justices of the Supreme Court fixed the date after taking arguments from both counsel for the federal government Oluwaleke Atolagbe and counsel for the appellant, Theodore Maiyaki .
John Yakubu who is the appellant is praying the Supreme Court to set aside the judgment of the lower court which sentenced him to six cumulative years of imprisonment and also ordered him to refund N22.9Bn to the federal government.
Also Read: Supreme Court sets aside Nwobike’s conviction
However, the former Director of Pension had at a high court of the Federal Capital Territory FCT in a plea bargain admitted diverting to personal use, N22.9Bn being pension fund entrusted to him by the federal government.
His admission of guilt at the high court followed a 3-count criminal charges bothering on breach of trust, diversion of N32.8Bn pension fund among others, brought against him by the federal government.
He was on January 28, 2013 subsequently jailed two years by Justice Abubakar Talba but granted an option of N750,000 fine in lieu of the imprisonment.
EFCC went on an appeal and on March 21, 2018 reversed the high court judgment and nullified it.
The Appeal Court stressed that the sentence of the high court did not serve as deterrence to both the convict and others rather imposed a jail term of six years on him and also ordered him to return N22.9Bn to the federal government as the complainant.
(Editor: Omor Bazuaye)
