A former member of the House of Representatives Farouk Lawan who was convicted for bribery has been released today.
Lawan was convicted in 2021 for seven years but had his sentence reduced by two years two years after after some of the charges against him were dropped.
In January this year, the Supreme Court affirmed his sentence insisting he must serve his jail terms.
His appeal sought to set aside the February 24, 2022 judgment of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, which sentenced him to a five-year jail term and discharged him on two out of the three counts on the corruption charge brought against him by the Federal Government.
In the lead judgment prepared by Justice John Okoro but read by Justice Tijjani Abubakar, the apex court held that Lawan’s appeal was without merit and dismissed it.
He was sent to Kuje Correctional Center for his term.
Lawan was convicted over a bribery allegation arising from the fuel subsidy probe in the House.
According to reports, Lawan was alleged to have demanded the sum of $3million for himself from the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Zenon Petroleum and Gas Limited, Femi Otedola.
He was allegedly collected 620,000 dollars out of the amount with a view to removing Otedola’s companies’ names from the list of firms indicted by the ad hoc committee for allegedly abusing the fuel subsidy regime in 2012.
He was alleged to have collected 620,000 dollars out of the amount with a view to removing Otedola’s companies’ names from the list of firms indicted by the ad hoc committee for allegedly abusing the fuel subsidy regime in 2012.