Court Jails Man 3 Years for Container Diversion, Forgery; ₦3m Fine Option Granted
A Federal High Court sitting in Kano has handed down a three-year prison sentence to Abdulrahman Sani Adam, convicting him of diverting containers and forging customs documents.
Justice Musa Sale, who delivered the judgement on Wednesday in Kano, ordered that the diverted containers be forfeited to the Federal Government for further action.
Adam faced charges of criminal diversion and forgery after being found guilty of diverting containers under customs supervision and fabricating official documents to cover up the act.
The court also gave the convict, Abdulrahman Sani Adam, an option to pay a fine of ₦3 million in lieu of the three-year prison sentence.
Shortly after the judgment, Smart Akande, Director of Legal Services for the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and prosecution counsel, told journalists that the convict’s actions resulted in lost revenue for the Federal Government, which should have been properly remitted.
Akande further stated that the prosecution and sentencing aimed to serve as a stern warning to others engaged in similar illicit activities, such as diverting customs-controlled containers and evading proper procedures.
He stated that the judgment underscored the NCS’s resolve to combat revenue losses, document forgery, and other infractions in the import-export process.
He expressed satisfaction with the judgment, saying it aligned with legal provisions and reinforced the rule of law.
