Appeal court upholds jail term of Yobe auditor general

The Gombe Division of the Court of Appeal, on Thursday, February 22, 2024, upheld the conviction of Alhaji Idris Yahaya, the auditor general for local government in Yobe State.

This was disclosed in a statement on Saturday by Dele Oyewale, spokesman of EFCC.

He recalled that Yahaya was convicted and sentenced to five years in prison on Monday, March 13, 2023, by Justice Muhammad Lawu Lawan of the Yobe State High Court after being prosecuted by the Maiduguri Zonal Command of the EFCC on a one-count of criminal misappropriation to the tune of N19.9m.

The statement revealed that Yahaya allegedly received funds from the Office of the Auditor General for Local Government and Emirate Affairs, Yobe State, for the purchase of an official vehicle, a 2015 Toyota Corolla, and diverted part of the money to his personal use.

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However, dissatisfied with the judgment, Yahaya approached the appellate court, where he raised five grounds of appeal and prayed the court to set aside the judgment of Justice Lawan.

While arguing against the appeal, counsel to the EFCC, Mukhtar Ali, prayed the court to uphold the judgment of the lower court and dismiss the appeal on the grounds that “the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.”

Delivering judgement on Thursday, the three-man panel led by Justice AAB Gumel, upheld the conviction of Yahaya and unanimously dismissed the appeal and consequently affirmed the judgement of the trial court.