Seriki Adinoyi in Jos
Four months after he was granted pardon by the Council of State, a former Governor of Plateau State, Chief Joshua Dariye, has finally secured his release from the Nigerian Prisons.
Dariye, who was prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for N1.16 billion fraud, was on June 12, 2018 sentenced to 14 years in prison for criminal breach of trust and two years in addition for misappropriation of public funds, both to run concurrently.
Justice Adebukola Banjoko of the FCT court before, whom he was standing trial for a 23-count amended charge, found him guilty of 15 of the counts bordering on criminal breach of trust, misappropriation of public funds but discharged him on eight.
Dariye was first arraigned on July 13, 2007 at the High Court after which he proceeded to the Appeal court with an application to quash all the charges but were all dismissed.
The court ordered accelerated hearing of the fraud case against him, thus necessitating the continuation of trial on January 25, 2016, before Justice Banjoko.
In addition to his sentencing, Justice Banjoko also ordered that the N80 million recovered by the EFCC be forfeited to the state government’s coffers.
But in April 2022, the Council of State, led by President Mohammadu Buhari approved the pardon of 159 convicts including Dariye and a former Governor of Taraba State, Rev. Jolly Nyame.
Since the pardon, they remained in custody until groups began to protest over their continued incarceration.
