Ex-FCTA Director Denied Bail Over ₦319m Fraud

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has refused an application for bail pending appeal filed by Garba Mohammed Dukku, a former Director of Finance and Administration with the Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC), who is serving a 24-year prison sentence for diverting about ₦319 million in public funds.

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) disclosed this on Thursday.

According to the anti-graft commission, Dukku had asked the appellate court to grant him bail while challenging the judgment of the Federal High Court, Abuja, which convicted him on corruption and money laundering charges.

In its ruling, the Court of Appeal held that the applicant failed to establish any exceptional circumstances to justify the exercise of its discretion in granting bail pending appeal. The court, however, ordered an accelerated hearing of the substantive appeal.

Dukku was convicted by Justice James Omotosho of the Federal High Court on six counts of corruption and money laundering in suit FHC/ABJ/CR/608/2022.

The ICPC proved during trial that between 2012 and 2013, Dukku diverted ₦318.25 million belonging to the AMMC into his personal Fidelity Bank account in multiple transactions before transferring the funds to Bureau de Change operators for unauthorised purposes.

Although the former director claimed he handed the money to his superiors, the trial court rejected the defence, holding that there was no credible evidence to support the claim and that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.

Justice Omotosho sentenced Dukku to four years’ imprisonment on each of the six counts, amounting to a total of 24 years, and imposed an option of fine amounting to about ₦1.6 billion, equivalent to five times the sums involved in each count.

Reacting to the ruling, the ICPC described the Court of Appeal’s decision as a reaffirmation that bail pending appeal can only be granted in exceptional circumstances, adding that it remains committed to prosecuting corruption cases and safeguarding public resources.