A Federal Capital Territory High Court sitting in Gudu has found former Plateau State governor, Senator Joshua Dariye, guilty of fraud.
Dariye was in 2007 charged to court on a 23-count charge for the alleged offence by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
In his ruling on Tuesday, Justice Banjoko found him guilty of breach of trust in count 1 of misappropriating N1.16 billion Ecological Fund meant for the state, count 2 (N160m), count 7 (N16.8m) and count 4 for the N250 million issued to Pinnacle Communications emanating from the state’s Ecological Fund.
According to the EFCC, the former governor diverted N1.16 billion into the account of Ebenezer Ratnen Venture, which is alleged to be one of the companies through which he allegedly siphoned the public funds.
Justice Banjoko said Dariye was, in fact, richer than his state, and “there should be no compromise to corruption by whatever shade or colour, rich or poor”.
Dariye is a serving senator representing Plateau West under the aegis of Nigeria’s ruling party, APC, to which he decamped in 2016. While in PDP, he was Governor of Plateau State from 1999 until November 2006, when he was impeached by the state’s House of Assembly.