The Federal High Court, Abuja Division, has sentenced a former power minister Saleh Mamman, who is currently on the run, to 75 years in prison for stealing ₦33.8 billion.
The court had earlier issued an arrest warrant for the convict who was absent in court on Wednesday when his sentencing was pronounced.
During the sentencing, his lawyer Mohammed Ahmed, who announced his appearance for Mr Mamman, told the court that he did not know the whereabouts of the ex-minister and could not reach him over the phone
Following the sentencing, Justice James Omotosho ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and other security agencies to liaise with Interpol to arrest Mr Mamman.
The judge held that the former minister’s sentence should start running from the day of his arrest.
Mr Mamman was convicted on all 12 counts of fraud and money laundering levelled against him by the EFCC. While he was handed seven years’ sentence each on 10 counts of the charge, the judge also sentenced him to three years’ and two years’ imprisonment on counts four and five of the charge respectively.
Mr Omotosho held that the sentence should run consecutively without option of fine except on count four which he allowed the payment of N10m fine.
The court also ordered the forfeiture of various foreign currencies that were recovered from Mr Mamman, as well as four choice landed property in Abuja which were traced to him.
Mr Mamman’s conviction was earlier announced by on May 7, 2026, in the absence of the former minister who has been on the run. The judge said the court was satisfied that the EFCC successfully established Mr Mamman’s culpability beyond reasonable doubt.
Mr Mamman, who served in the administration of then-President Muhammadu Buhari, was found complicit in the illegal diversion of public funds totalling ₦33.8 billion. The court found that Mr Mamman made a cash payment of $655,700 for landed property in Abuja, without recourse to a financial institution.
He was also found guilty of criminal breach of trust in relation to funds released by the federal government for the Mambilla and Zungeru Hydroelectric Power Plant projects.
The court noted that most of the funds were siphoned through bureau de change operators, who converted the money into foreign currencies and handed it over to the defendant.
“The evidence of the prosecution is overwhelming as against the scanty and almost absent defence of the defendant. The defendant did not offer any credible evidence to rebut the prosecution’s case,” said the judge. “Rather than creating a legacy to tackle the epileptic power supply in the country, the defendant was living large at the expense of ordinary citizens. Little wonder that Nigerians have remained in darkness to date.”
