In a decisive legal action, Justice A.A Bello of the Kaduna State High Court, located in Kaduna, has pronounced a ten-year prison sentence upon Idris Musa for perpetrating Automated Teller Machine (ATM) fraud. The judgment was delivered on Tuesday, January 9, 2024, following Musa’s admission of guilt to a one-count charge related to cheating, as brought forth by the Kaduna Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The specific charge against Musa was articulated as follows: “you, Idris Musa, sometimes in July 2022, in Kaduna within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, dishonestly induced one Idris Ismail by swapping his Zenith Bank ATM card under the guise of helping him withdraw money, an act which you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 306(a) of the Kaduna State Penal Code Law, 2017 and punishable under Section 307 of the same law.”
Upon the reading of the charge, Musa promptly pleaded guilty, prompting the prosecution counsel, M.U Gadaka, to request the court to proceed with the conviction. Justice Bello subsequently handed down a sentence, condemning Musa to a ten-year imprisonment term or an alternative fine of N200,000.00 (Two Hundred Thousand Naira only).
Musa’s legal woes commenced with his arrest for engaging in the surreptitious swapping of ATM cards belonging to unsuspecting victims, ostensibly while assisting them in operating the payment machine. Notably, he was apprehended within the premises of a bank, with a shocking discovery of 48 ATM cards from various banks found in his possession. The conviction underscores the gravity of his actions and serves as a deterrent to potential perpetrators of similar fraudulent activities.
