Two sentenced to 23 years imprisonment for robbing SSS officer

A Kogi High Court sitting in Lokoja on Thursday sentence two persons, Bala Mohammed and Zekeri Hassan, to 23 years imprisonment for criminal conspiracy, armed robbery and illegal possession of firearms.

Reading his judgment upon the closure of cases by the prosecution and the defendant, the presiding judge, Justice Sunday Otu, said the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt by cogent, credible, compelling and positive evidence.

The prosecuting counsel, Mohammed Abaji of the state Ministry of Justice, had informed the court that the convicts and others at large on April 25, 2015, attacked and robbed an officer of the State Security Service (SSS), Salihu Zuberu on duty at Save House, GRA, Lokoja.

He said the convicts robbed their victim at gun point and carted away his Nokia 607 I-phone, Techno, HP Laptop, mini-Uzi machine gun and the sum of N12,000 and N15,000.

The prosecuting counsel said the report by the security officer led to the investigation of the matter resulting in the recovery of the mini-uzi machine gun and some of the looted items.

The judge said the convicts were young men who should be going about their legitimate businesses to make living but decided to go against the law to acquire wealth through criminal means.

According to him, the decision of the court is expected to send strong warning to the society and at the same time considered their age.

The judge accordingly sentenced them to eight years for criminal conspiracy under section 97(1); another eight years for armed robbery, section 298(2) of the Penal Code and seven years for illegal possession of firearms, section 3 of the Robbery and Firearms (Special Provisions) Act CAP R11 LFN 2004.

He said that the sentences would run concurrently and take cognizance of the period they have spent in detention awaiting trial.