An Ondo State High Court, Akure Division, on Monday sentenced seven Fulani herdsmen to life imprisonment for kidnapping former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Olu Falae.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Justice Williams Olamide found the accused guilty of the act committed in 2015 as charged by the Ondo State government.
Mr. Falae was taken captive by the herdsmen on September 21, 2015 during his 77th birthday.
He was released four days later after paying about N5 million as ransom.
The convicts are Abubakar Auta, Bello Jannu, Umaru Ibrahim, Masahudu Muhammed, and Idris Lawal. Two others were convicted in absentia.
The judge stated that the recovered ransom, call logs and identification of the suspects by Mr. Falae indicted them of complicity in the crime.
He subsequently sentenced them to life imprisonment without an option of fine.
The Nigeria Police Force, Ondo State Command, had arraigned the convicts for kidnap in October 2015, disclosing that two others were at large.
At their arraignment, all five pleaded not guilty to the five-count charge.
The charge reads: “That you, Abubakar Auta, Bello Jannu, Umaru Ibarahim, Masahudu Muhammed, Idris Lawal and others now at large, on or about Monday, September 21, 2015 at Kajola/Eyinala Community in Akure Judicial Division did give information for the purpose of kidnapping and abducting Chief Samuel Oluyemi Falae.