A Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the remand of Faisal Maina, son of former Pension Reform Task Team chairman Abdulrasheed Maina, at a correctional centre to serve his jail term for money laundering.
Justice James Omotosho issued the order on Thursday after granting an ex parte application by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) seeking a warrant for Faisal’s commitment to the Nigeria Correctional Service.
The EFCC asked the court to enforce Faisal’s conviction and sentence for money laundering and for failing to fully disclose his assets in a declaration form.
The commission also requested that Faisal’s prison term commence from October 14, 2026, the date he was rearrested by the Department of State Services in Karsana, Abuja. Faisal had previously jumped bail and disappeared during his trial but was handed over to the EFCC about six years later.
After hearing from EFCC counsel M.K. Hussain, Justice Omotosho granted the application and issued the committal warrant. The judge directed Faisal to serve three years’ imprisonment on count one, seven years on count two, and three years on count three, in accordance with the Court of Appeal’s judgment delivered on November 24, 2022. The sentences are to run concurrently, starting from October 14, 2026.
Faisal was first arraigned in 2019 on a three-count charge of money laundering and failure to fully disclose his assets. He pleaded not guilty before then-presiding Justice Okon Abang, but later absconded, prompting the court to proceed in his absence. On October 7, 2021, Faisal was convicted and sentenced to five years’ imprisonment on counts one and three and 14 years on count two, all to run concurrently. Justice Abang also ordered his arrest and remand to serve his sentence. The Court of Appeal subsequently upheld the conviction but reduced the sentences to three years on counts one and three and seven years on count two.
Faisal’s father, Abdulrasheed Maina, was separately convicted in a money laundering case involving about N2 billion and has since completed his prison sentence.
