Shariah Court Judge, others, sacked over diversion of N400 million proceed of estates in Niger

Twenty Seven staff of the Niger State Judiciary among them, a Shariah Court Judge and his Registrar have been sacked by the Niger State Judicial Service Commission (NJSC), for their alleged involvement in certificate racketeering.

The Shariah court judge and his court Registrar were alleged to have diverted the sum of N400 million belonging to the family of late Minna business man Alhaji Labaran Kalgo to their personal pocket.

The money was the sales of their estates in Abuja and Minna which was ordered to be sold by the family through court and the money was to be shared by the heirs of the deceased.

Alhaji Mustapha Labaran Kalgo had petitiones the Shariah Court judge and his Registrar before the Chief Judge of Niger State, Justice Halima Ibrahim Abdulmalik over the the sales of the estates.

Upon the receipt of the petition, the Chief Judge without wasting, time constituted a seven man committee headed by Justice Balkisu Gambo Yusuf to investigate the allegations raised in the petition and the Shariah Court Judge, Registrar and other were found culpable.

Speaking further, Garafini disclosed that the Shariah Court Judge and his Registrar were sacked as a result of the petition forwarded to the Chief Judge by the heirs of the late Alhaji Labaran Kalgo alleging that the Shariah Court Judge who was appointed to administer the sales of their estates in Minna and Abuja, sold the both estates.”

Both the Shariah Court Judge and his Registrar after they sold off the properties at the sum of N400 million they could not give the account of the money. The Justice Balkisu Gambo Yusuf committee recommended for their dismissal and prosecution” he further stated.

He explained that the Engineer Ibrahim Panti committee on staff verification set up by Niger State governor Abubakar Sani Bello some time last year discovered that their certificate were forged and the committee recommended for their dismissal from the service.

According to him, the NJSC forwarded the certificates to the schools they claimed to have attended, “and it was discovered that the certificates were forged.”

He explained that the NSJSC on its own recommended that they should be reverse back to the lowest certificate they were employed with “for them to further their studies to enable them obtain higher certificate, but they still went to forge their certificates.

“We were left with no other option than to sack them. That was exactly the recommendation of the committee constituted by the Chief Judge” he stated.

Also speaking in an exclusive interview with CAPITAL POST in his office in Minna, the Secretary of Niger State Judicial Service Commission (NJSC), Alhaji Abdulrahman Ahmed Garafini, disclosed that the twenty staff of the Judiciary were involved in certificate racketeering in their appointment.

However, CAPITAL POST reliably gathered that the duo are already cooling their heels at the State Investigation and Intelligent Department (SCIID), at the Niger State Police headquarters in Minna for their onward prosecution in Court.