The High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Apo, Abuja has sentenced a former member of the House of Representatives from Kano State, Farouk Lawan to a seven-year jail term for demanding a $3million bribe and receiving $500,000 from oil mogul Femi Otedola.
Justice Angella Otaluka adjudged Lawan guilty of a three-count charge on which he was tried by the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC).
The judge sentenced him to seven years in respect of counts one and two, and five years on count three.
The judge ordered Lawan to refund the $500,000 he was found to have collected from Otedola to the coffers of the Federal Government.
Lawan was a four-term member of the House of Representatives, who represented Bagwai/Shanono Constituency of Kano State between 1999 and 2015 on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
He committed the offence while serving as the Chairman of House of Representatives Adhoc Committee on Petroleum Subsidy Regime in 2012
ICPC accused Lawan of demanding $3million from the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Zenon Petroleum and Gas Limited, Femi Otedola.
He was alleged to have collected $500,000 out of the amount with a pledge to remove Otedola’s companies’ names from the list of firms indicted by the ad-hoc committee for allegedly abusing the fuel subsidy regime in 2012.
