Widow jailed 5 years over unlawful sale of petroleum products

A middle-aged widow, Fausat Jimoh, is to spend the next five years in prison for unlawfully dealing in petroleum products. The widow was sent to jail last Friday on the orders of a Federal High Court, sitting in Lagos. Justice Hadizat Rabiu-Shagari, convicted and sentenced the widow after being satisfied with the case of the […]

A middle-aged widow, Fausat Jimoh, is to spend the next five years in prison for unlawfully dealing in petroleum products.

The widow was sent to jail last Friday on the orders of a Federal High Court, sitting in Lagos.

Justice Hadizat Rabiu-Shagari, convicted and sentenced the widow after being satisfied with the case of the prosecution against her.

Justice Rabiu-Shagari, after convicting the widow of two counts charge of conspiracy to unlawful dealing in petroleum products, illegal distribution, and selling of the petroleum products which the police said was stolen from a vandalized pipeline belonging to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

The charges were made against the convict by the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).

In convicting and sentencing the widow, Justice Rabiu-Shagari, said the prosecution has been able to establish a prima-facie case against the defendant adding that all the pieces of evidence provided by the prosecution witnesses have linked the defendant to the crime.

Consequently, Justice Rabiu-Shagari, pronounced the widow guilty as charged and sentenced her to five years imprisonment on both count one and two. The judge, however, ordered that the terms of the sentence are to run concurrently while adding that the jail-term start to count from February 17, 2016.

NSCDC in a charge marked FHC/L/318c/13, alleged that the convict and Taiwo and Kehinde Lisa (now at large) on August 31, 2013, at Isheri-Olofin, Ogun State, conspired to and dealt in petroleum products without lawful authority.

The Corps also accused the convict of selling and distributing petroleum products, suspected to be from vandalized pipeline.

The offence according to the NSCDC are contrary to sections 3(6) and 1(17) and punishable under section 1(17) of the Miscellaneous Act, 2004.