By Eberechi Obinagwam
The presiding judge of Lagos High Court 6, Special Offense and Domestic Violence Court, Justice S O Solebo has freed Dabiri Modusola, the woman who pleaded guilt to stealing from staff of Ojo Local government educational board, Lagos State.
The judge, while counselling her at the court after the ruling, said: “No more stealing. You wanted fast track and see where the fast track has landed you. You have wasted your productive years in prison.
“By now those you left in service must have been ahead of you. As you are out now, you are not employable because employers don’t even consider applicants of 28 years of age not to talk of you being 48 and a convict. You really need to work on yourself.
“You have to go and beg your children and others because you have not made them proud. It should not be time for you to start counting offense. I am sure that your family neglected you because you brought their name to the mud. Dabiri is a known name in Lagos. Go and sin no more.”
Her freedom was based on her lawyer’s plea to the judge to tamper justice with a mind of mercy seeing that the mother of three, now 48 years old has spent seven of her productive years in custody and that she is remorseful at the last adjournment on November 15 when she pleaded guilty to 53 counts.
Also, the judge ruled that she was supposed to serve seven years for each of the 53 counts, and it is to run concurrently from July 25, 2011, the day she got into prison.
By prison calendar, she has served prison time of eight years because eight months makes one year.
The judge however told the defense counsel to take her to Women Affairs and Poverty Alleviation for rehabilitation.
Someone who gave his name as Anayo from prison Fellowship disclosed to our reporter that he gave her the advice to plead guilty which she accepted.
“I was here at the last hearing and I am here today. I feel very much happy for her release. Accepting the counts shows that she is remorseful of the act she committed and she is never going to do it again,” Anayo said.
Dabiri was accused of conniving with seven others to obtain a loan of fourteen million, six hundred and sixty seven thousand Naria from Olawale Saromi a staff of Credit Direct Nigeria Limited, a subsidiary of First City group.
She was said to have used a forged document, their pay slip, staff identity card, passport photographs, statement of account and letter of introduction without their knowledge while as an accountant and internal auditor of Ojo Local government Education Authority.
The fraud was exposed in 2010 when the 48 staff noticed an indiscriminate deduction from their salary.
When they started questioning the rational behind the deduction, investigation revealed that the first defendant (Dabiri), took the lion share of the fraudulent loan while other staff who conspired with her got various money in a ratio agreed by the parties.
Trial commenced on March 28, 2012 with the prosecution calling eight witnesses and various exhibits giving. The defence cross examined all the eight witnesses.
Defence opened trial on June 8, 2016 with Dabiri as its first defendant. She represented herself and gave brief of herself too.
On November 15, 2018 she pleaded guilty of 53 counts.
And on December 11, she was asked to go home and sin no more.
She so far paid the sum of one million, one hundred and eleven thousand out of one million, five hundred and fifty thousand charge.