The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the transfer of Faisal Maina, son of former Pension Reform Taskforce chairman Abdulrasheed Maina, to a correctional facility to begin serving his prison sentence.
Justice James Omotosho issued the order on Thursday after granting an ex-parte application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), through its counsel, M.K. Hussain.
Faisal was recently rearrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) on October 14, 2026, and subsequently handed over to the EFCC after evading trial for about six years following his release on bail.
He was initially arraigned before the Federal High Court in Abuja in 2019 on a three-count charge bordering on money laundering and failure to provide complete information in an asset declaration form.
The defendant entered his plea before Justice Okon Abang, now a Court of Appeal justice, but later absconded and failed to appear for trial. Consequently, the court proceeded with the case in his absence.
On October 7, 2021, Justice Abang found him guilty and sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment on counts one and three, and 14 years on count two. The sentences were ordered to run concurrently, with a directive that he be arrested wherever he was found and taken to a correctional facility.
Following his arrest, the EFCC approached the court to obtain permission to enforce the earlier judgment. The commission also requested a warrant committing him to the Nigeria Correctional Service to serve the sentence, in line with the trial court’s decision and the Court of Appeal’s judgment of November 24, 2022.
The commission further asked that his prison term take effect from October 14, 2026, the date of his rearrest.
Granting the application, Justice Omotosho authorised the enforcement of the previous judgment and issued the warrant for Faisal’s transfer to the correctional centre.
The judge, while relying on the Court of Appeal’s decision, stated that Faisal was to serve three years’ imprisonment on count one, seven years on count two and another three years on count three.
He directed that the sentences run concurrently, beginning from October 14, 2026, when the convict was rearrested.
The ruling effectively places Faisal’s prison term at seven years, being the longest of the concurrent sentences.
(NAN)