Mr. Abdul Barrie, had initially entered a ‘not-guilty’ plea at his first court appearance, but later changed his plea to ‘guilty’ for the fifth count of ‘Failure to Disclose Interest to Public Body’, contrary to Section 45 (1) of the Anti-Corruption Act No 12 of 2008.
Hon. Justice Reginald Fynn Jr. convicted the former Deputy Minister of MWHI on the said count. He ordered that, if the convict chose to pay the fine of two hundred and fifty million Leones (Le 250,000,000), he must make a full payment within thirty (30) days, effective 24th April, 2019, or face three years imprisonment. However, trial will continue on the other counts of offences. The matter was adjourned to 20th May, 2019.
In this regard, officials of Anti Corruption Commission (ACC) informed AYV that it is advising all public officers who are in control of public resources to comply with laid down laws and procedures in the handling and disbursement of public funds.
The ACC was represented by Sariffou Harleston Esq., whilst the convict was represented by I.S. Yillah Esq.
