A High Court of the
Federal Capital Territory has sentenced a former Taraba State governor,
Jolly Nyame, to 14 years in prison without an option of fine.
Mr
Nyame was found guilty of 27 out of 41 counts of alleged diversion of
public funds while he served as governor of Taraba State.
He
was charged by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for
allegedly diverting N1.64 billion while he served as governor between
1999 to 2007.
The judge sentenced the defendant to four different
terms in prison, after finding him guilty of receiving gratification,
obtaining public funds without due consideration, criminal breach of
trust and gratification.
The various sentences include a time of prison for two, five, seven and 14 years respectively.
The
judge Adebukola Banjoko however noted that the terms are expected to
run concurrently, meaning he would serve 14 years in jail unless the
conviction is upturned by a higher court.from premium times