EFCC Secures 37 Convictions, Recover N55m Cash And Properties In Gombe State

The Gombe Zonal office of EFCC secured 37 convictions from first January to March 2019. 

This was disclosed on Monday, April 29, 2019 by the Zonal Head, Michael Wetkas in a media briefing organised by the zone to acquaint the media with the successes recorded in the first quarter of 2019 by the Gombe Zonal Office of the Commission.

Wetkas revealed that the zone in the first quarter, received 81 petitions, out of which it secured 37 convictions and recovered N55.6million in cash. Regarding properties, he said houses valued at N18.8million were forfeited as well as two vehicles whose values are yet to be ascertained.

According to him, “The Acting Chairman of the Commission, Ibrahim Magu, in his rigorous enlightenment efforts to educate voters, introduced a very good idea of election monitoring because of what happened with the 2015 general elections, in which a lot of INEC staffs were convicted, while some are still undergoing trial after their suspension.

In Gombe, eight people were arrested during the 2019 general election, including a local government chairman and two councillors. One of the councillors was convicted.”

He urged the general public to know that debt recovery is not a mandate of the Commission but the enforcement of economic and financial crimes laws, with the intent to discourage the public from committing offences along such lines.

“The general public should desist from withdrawing their petition against a person or entity when they realise that their money has fully been recovered. The Commission cannot tolerate this,” he said.

Wetkas also lamented the rising number of fraudsters, some of whom he said, manipulate government policies to defraud unsuspecting Nigerians. The Zonal Head on behalf of Magu solicited more support from media organisations, while urging all stakeholders to join hand with EFCC in the fight against corruption.

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