A 38-year-old man identified as Danjuma Yaro has been sentenced to 10 months imprisonment by an Upper Area Court in Gwagwalada, FCT on Monday for selling a fake plot of land.
The convict, who resides in Pasali village, Kuje, FCT, was charged with criminal breach of trust and cheating after selling the land for N1.5 million.
The Judge, Sani Umar, in his ruling sentenced the convict after he pleaded guilty and begged the court for leniency.
Mr Umar, however, gave the convict an option to pay a fine of N10,000 fine for each offence or in default serve a jail term of five months on each offence which would run consecutively.
“The reason for this sentence is that the convict did not waste the time of the court in telling the truth, he has shown remorse for the act.
“His counsel has also sought an option of fine, he is a first time offender and has certain responsibility as a father,” he held.
The judge, however, awarded N1.5 million as compensation as prayed by the Prosecution Counsel, Abdullahi Tanko, on behalf of the nominal complainant.
He said the compensation was not in lieu of prison but a reasonable instalment payment, and warned the criminal to desist from committing crime.
The complainant, Dele Ani of No 61 Kayarda extension layout, Kuje, had reported the crime at the police Gwagwalada Area Command office on January 28.
He reported that the convict and one Yahaya Idris, who is standing trial before the same court, on February 2, 2021, conspired and sold a plot of land to the complainant located behind LEA secretariat measuring 100 by 100 ft for N1.5 million.
The complainant was later to discover that the land belonged to another person.
The defence counsel, Owobu Godday, in his plea for allocutus, prayed the court to temper justice with mercy, saying that the convict was a family man and the bread winner, and prayed the court to grant his client an option of fine.