Two businessmen, Usman Abubakar and Salisu Abdullahi, have been arraigned before the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Chief Magistrate’s Court at Lifecamp, Abuja, by the FCT Police Command for allegedly receiving stolen property.
Abubakar (36), whose address was given to be Kabusa Village, and Abdullahi (58), of Garki Village, both in Abuja, were also accused of criminal conspiracy, mischief, and dishonesty.
The defendants, according to the police counsel, Donatus Abah, were arrested following the deployment of the men of the command’s Rapid Response Squad (RRS) based on information received by FCT Commissioner of Police, CP Ben Igwe, on July 20, 2024.
Abah further told the court that RRS operatives intercepted and arrested a trailer loaded with a large consignment of vandalised electricity cable, armoured cable, electric wire, different vehicle parts, and aluminium suspected to have been stolen at Apo Pantaker in Abuja with the two defendants.
The offences allegedly committed by the defendants, according to the prosecution, were against the provisions of Sections 97, 317, 319, and 334 of the Penal Code Law.
When the charges preferred against them were read to the defendants in the open court, they both pleaded not guilty, prompting the prosecuting counsel to ask for a date for the police to begin their case against the defendants.
However, counsel for the defendants, M.I. Mohammed, applied for their bail, which was granted to them by
Chief Magistrate Musa Jobbo.
The Chief Magistrate granted the defendants bail in the sum of N500,000 and two sureties each in like sum.
One of the sureties for each of the defendants, according to Chief Magistrate Jobbo, must be a civil servant and the other one a businessperson.
He further ordered that the defendants’ sureties must reside within the court’s jurisdiction.
The case was subsequently adjourned to October 2 for the commencement of the hearing.