\n\n
The Federal High Court in Abuja has sentenced former Minister of Power, Saleh Mamman, to 75 years imprisonment over a ₦33.8 billion fraud and money laundering case linked to the Mambilla and Zungeru hydroelectric power projects. Justice James Omotosho delivered the judgment on Wednesday after finding Mamman guilty on all 12 counts filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. 
According to the court, Mamman diverted public funds meant for critical power infrastructure projects during his tenure under former President Muhammadu Buhari. The judge sentenced him to seven years imprisonment each on 10 counts, while counts four and five attracted three years and two years respectively. The sentences are to run consecutively, bringing the total jail term to 75 years. Count four also carried an option of a ₦10 million fine. 
Justice Omotosho ruled that the former minister’s repeated absence from court amounted to a deliberate attempt to frustrate justice, allowing the sentencing to proceed in absentia under provisions of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act. The court subsequently directed Nigerian security agencies and Interpol to arrest Mamman wherever he is found and hand him over to the Nigerian Correctional Service to begin serving his sentence from the date of arrest. 
The court also ordered the final forfeiture of several Abuja properties and foreign currencies linked to the convict, alongside the recovery of outstanding funds traced to the alleged diversion scheme. Mamman, who served as Minister of Power between 2019 and 2021, had earlier been convicted in absentia on May 7 after the EFCC presented 17 witnesses and 43 exhibits during the trial. The ruling is being described as one of Nigeria’s most significant high-profile corruption convictions in recent years. 
