Two idp rice thieves sentenced to jail for two years each

TWO men including a local government staff jailed for diverting and sale of idp rice.

Two men Umar Ibrahim and Bulama Zangebe have been jailed two years each for criminal misappropriation of grains mostly rice meant for internally displaced people IDP’S of Mafa local government area of Borno state.

The duo who appeared before justice Umar Fadau of High  court thirteen gidan madara Maiduguri were also found guilty of criminal conspiracy to steal and sell 180 bags of rice belonging to desperate idps which they sold at 8,500 naira per bag to line their pockets.

Apart from serving the sentence, they are supposed to pay a fine of one million naira as penalties for their criminal breach of trust which will keep them in the baga road gulag for the next two years.

Trouble started when Umar Ibrahim who works in the agric department of mafa local government area Bulama Zangebe and Shittima Mainari now at large were dragged before the court for a four count charge of selling and misappropriation of the proceeds of rice meant for IDPS.

Shettima Maina who was the chair of the local government area before his disappearance was equally charged for dishonestly converting to his use the sum of 1.44m naira alleged to be the proceeds from the sale of 180 bags of rice handed to him contrary to sections 308 and 309 of the penal code law Cap 345 of northern Nigeria.

Several witnesses were lined up for the case which was started in January by the economic and financial crimes commission EFCC base on an intelligence report against the defendants in December 2016 when the offence was committed.

Shittma who is alleged to be the ring leader in the diversion was not around while the duo were sent to the prison yard for conspiracy and criminal misappropriation because according to the learned judge, the two ingredients of criminal misappropriation were proved beyond reasonable doubt.

“I have no doubt that the matter of criminal conspiracy also proved beyond reasonable doubt both were found guilty” said the trial judge.

Borno state Governor Kashim Shettima has been shouting himself hoarse that anyone found culpable in stealing food meant for idps should face the full letters of the law because most of the stealing has been done with impunity by people who are better placed financially.

Idps themselves have often times remonstrated openly whenever the Governor Kashim Shettima, his deputy Mamman Durkwa, or even humanitarian groups who bring food for them in a bid to protest what they described the terrible treatments received from the state Emergency agency SEMA.