The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Gombe zonal Office, on Wednesday, January 10, 2017 arraigned one Alhaji Adamu Idris before Justice Sa’ad Muhammad of the Gombe State High Court on one count charge of illegal conversion of N600,000 belonging to one Hajiya Asabe Hussaini.

Hussaini alleged that Idris, sometime in March 2015, deceived her to sell her house under the guise that the house was situated on an undulated slope, while promising to get her another house in a good location.

Unknown that it was a trap, Hussaini fell for it. According to her, Idris brought one Kasim Abdullahi, to whom the house was sold at the rate of N700,000. The defendant (Idris) collected the money and pocketed N600,000 as he neither provided ‘another house in a good location’ as promised nor remit the balance of the money realised from the sale of the Hussani’s house back to her.

The offence contravenes Section 311 of the Penal Code Laws of the Northern Nigeria 1963 and punishable under Section 312 of the same Law.

The charge reads: “That you, Alhaji Adamu Idris, sometime in March 2015 or thereabout, at Gombe, Gombe State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did dishonestly convert the sum of N600,000 (Six Hundred Thousand Naira Only) belonging to one Hajiya Asabe Hussaini, which sum were kept in your custody and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 311 and punishable under Section 312 of the Penal Code Laws of the Northern Nigeria 1963.”

The defendant pleaded not guilty to the charge.

In view of his plea, counsel to the EFCC, Zarami Muhammad, asked the court for a date to commence trial.

Justice Muhammad, however, granted bail to the defendant in the sum of N250,000 with one surety in like sum. The surety must have landed property within the jurisdiction of the court with title documents.

The judge, thereafter, ordered the defendant to be remanded in prison custody pending the fulfillment of his bail conditions and adjourned to January 30, 2018 for trial.