The Court of Appeal, Abuja division, has reduced the jail term of a former member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Farouk Lawan, to five years.
The former lawmaker was convicted by a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) on June 22, 2021, on a three-count charge.
In the charge, he was accused of soliciting bribes, agreeing to accept bribes and actually accepting a $500,000 bribe from a businessman, Femi Otedola.
The lower court, in its judgment by Justice Angela Otaluka, sentenced Lawan to seven years on count one; seven years on count two, and five years on count three.
But the appelate court in an unanimous judgment by a three-member panel led by the court’s President, Justice Monica Dongban-Mensem, quashed Lawan’s conviction on counts one and two.
The court held that the prosecution failed to prove both counts relating to demanding for and agreeing to accept a $3million bribe from Otedola.
The appellate court found that the prosecution was only able to prove the third count relating to his accepting bribe of $500,000.
The court then acquitted Lawan on counts one and two (on which he was sentenced to seven years per count), but convicted him on count three (on which he was sentenced to five years).
