The Supreme Court of Nigeria has affirmed the conviction and seven-year prison sentence imposed on Senator Albert Bassey in connection with a N240 million fraud case, while restoring an order for restitution of N204 million to Akwa Ibom State.
In a judgment delivered on Friday, February 27, 2026, a five-member panel of the apex court, led by Justice Stephen Jonah Adah, upheld the decisions of the trial court and the Court of Appeal, dismissing the appeal filed by the senator.
The court ruled that the conviction and sentence handed down on June 23, 2023, by the lower court remain valid. It further held that the Court of Appeal erred when it failed to uphold the restitution order earlier made by the trial court.
“The order of this court is that the conviction and sentencing imposed by the lower court on the 23rd day of June 2023 on the appellant is hereby affirmed,” Justice Adah stated. “However, the decision of the lower court voiding the order of restitution given by the trial court did not follow the law. It is accordingly revised, and the restitution of the sum of N204 million made by the trial court is hereby restored.”
Bassey’s prosecution stemmed from charges filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which accused him of receiving bribes in the form of 12 vehicles valued at N254 million while serving as Commissioner for Finance in Akwa Ibom State.
The EFCC’s case, prosecuted by Senior Advocate of Nigeria Ekele Iheanacho before Justice Agatha Okeke of the Federal High Court in Uyo, resulted in Bassey’s conviction on all seven counts. On December 1, 2022, the trial court sentenced him to seven years’ imprisonment on each count, amounting to a cumulative 42 years.
Dissatisfied with the verdict, Bassey appealed to the Court of Appeal, where a three-member panel led by Justice Raphael Chikwe Agbo upheld the conviction but introduced an option of fine.
The matter subsequently proceeded to the Supreme Court, which has now affirmed the conviction and reinstated the restitution order, bringing the protracted legal battle to a close.
