Man jailed 2 years for receiving stolen rail tracks

An Upper Customary Court in Kafanchan, Kaduna State, on Wednesday, sentenced one Abubakar Garba to two years in jail for receiving stolen rail tracks.

Garba was arraigned alongside Abdulrahman Isah on a three-count charge of criminal trespass, stealing and receiving stolen property belonging to the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC).

The two men had pleaded guilty to the charges, and prayed the court for leniency.

Delivering judgment, the Judge, Mr George Gwani, sentenced Garba to two years imprisonment on counts one and two – trespass and stealing.

He however gave the convict an option of payment of N50,000 fine on count three – receiving stolen property.

Also, Gwani sentenced Isah to six months imprisonment on count one, but with an option of N20,000 and one year imprisonment for the second count with an option of N16,000 fine.

He said that the sentences were to run concurrently.

Earlier, the Police Prosecutor, Insp Esther Bishen, told the court that a police team while on patrol on May 5 arrested Isah after he broke into the railway office in Kafanchan and stole two rail tracks.

Bishen said during investigation, Isah confessed to have sold the two tracks to Garba at the rate of N4000 each.

She said the offences contravened sections 337, 270 and 301 of the Kaduna State Penal Code Law.

The prosecutor thereafter prayed the court to summarily conduct the trial of the convicts in line with Section 125 (8) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.