Court Orders Maina’s Son to Begin Seven-Year Jail Term After Re-arrest

By Sabiu Abdullahi

A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the commitment of Faisal, son of former Pension Reform Task Team chairman Abdulrasheed Maina, to a correctional centre to serve his seven-year prison sentence following his recent re-arrest.

Justice James Omotosho issued the order on Thursday after granting an ex-parte application filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and moved by its counsel, M.K. Hussain.

Faisal was re-arrested by the Department of State Services (DSS) on October 14, 2026, and subsequently handed over to the EFCC after allegedly jumping bail and evading trial for about six years.

He was initially arraigned before the Federal High Court in Abuja in 2019 on a three-count charge bordering on money laundering and failure to make full disclosure in an asset declaration form.

After pleading not guilty before Justice Okon Abang, now a Justice of the Court of Appeal, Faisal reportedly absconded and failed to return to court for his trial.

Consequently, Justice Abang proceeded with the case in his absence and delivered judgment on October 7, 2021, convicting him on all three counts.

The court initially sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment on counts one and three, and 14 years on count two. The judge, however, directed that the sentences should run concurrently and ordered that Faisal be arrested wherever he was found and taken to a correctional centre.

Following his re-arrest, the EFCC approached Justice Omotosho for permission to enforce the earlier judgment, including the issuance of a warrant committing the convict to the Nigeria Correctional Service (NCoS).

The commission also sought an order that the prison term should commence from October 14, 2026, the date Faisal was arrested.

Granting the application, Justice Omotosho authorised the EFCC to enforce the judgment and issued a warrant for Faisal’s transfer to the correctional facility.

The judge clarified that, in line with the Court of Appeal’s decision of November 24, 2022, the applicable sentences were three years’ imprisonment on count one, seven years on count two and three years on count three.

He directed that the sentences should run concurrently, beginning from October 14, 2026, when Faisal was re-arrested.

The development means Faisal will serve a seven-year prison term, being the longest of the three concurrent sentences.

His father, Abdulrasheed Maina, a former chairman of the defunct Pension Reform Taskforce Team, was also convicted in a separate case involving a ₦2bn money laundering charge and has served his prison sentence.