Ibrahim Abdullahi, a man recently convicted and sentenced to one year in prison for stealing N30,000 through fraudulent Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card swapping, has confessed to engaging in the illicit activity to fund his upcoming wedding.
The Gombe Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) brought two charges of stealing against Abdullahi, who faced justice at the Bauchi State High Court.
The conviction came after a statement released by the EFCC on Friday, revealing that Abdullahi had admitted guilt to both charges.
The charges, one of which read, “committed theft of N30,000.00 (Thirty Thousand Naira) by taking it out of the possession of Zainab Usman, through the use of her UBA ATM card contrary to Section 287 of the Penal Code Law,” outlined the details of Abdullahi’s criminal activity.
During the court proceedings, EFCC counsel A.B. Kware urged the court to convict and sentence Abdullahi accordingly.
However, Abdullahi’s counsel, Jamilu Salihu, pleaded for leniency, emphasizing that his client, a first-time offender, had expressed remorse and vowed to reform.
Justice M.A Shambu ultimately sentenced Abdullahi to one year in prison or a fine of N20,000, with an additional directive to restitute the stolen sum of N30,000 to his victim.
Abdullahi’s journey into the Correctional Centre began when a petitioner reported a suspicious debit of N30,000 from her UBA account.
The victim recounted encountering Abdullahi at the bank, where he volunteered to assist her with the ATM. Unbeknownst to her, he swapped her card during the transaction, later claiming it was unsuccessful.
Upon receiving a debit alert and realizing the swapped card was not hers, the victim reported the incident.
During arrest and subsequent interrogation, Abdullahi admitted to orchestrating the ATM card swapping himself, revealing that he had moved from Kano State to Bauchi State specifically to carry out this fraudulent activity to fund his wedding.
He confessed to possessing five different ATM cards belonging to his victims.
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