Supreme Court Upholds Seven-Year Jail Term For Ex-Senator Albert Bassey

The Supreme Court of Nigeria has delivered a final blow to former Senator Albert Bassey Akpan, upholding his conviction and seven-year prison sentence over a N240 million fraud case that has dragged on for years.

NaijaChoice News reports that the apex court, in a unanimous decision on Friday, February 27, 2026, not only affirmed the guilty verdict but also restored the trial court’s order directing the ex-lawmaker to refund N204 million to the Akwa Ibom State Government.

Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Stephen Jonah Adah, who presided over a five-man panel, declared: “The order of this court is that the conviction and sentencing imposed by the lower court on the 23 day of June 2023 on the appellant is hereby affirmed but the order of the lower court avoiding the order of restitution given by the trial court did not follow the law, so it is revised and the right order is to nullify same and thereby the restitution of sum of N204 million made by the trial court is restored.”

Bassey Akpan, who represented Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District in the Senate between June 2015 and January 2023, had earlier served as Commissioner for Finance in Akwa Ibom State from 2007 to 2014 under former Governor Godswill Akpabio. His political journey took interesting turns as he defected from the PDP to the Young Progressives Party (YPP) to contest the 2023 governorship election, which he lost to Governor Umo Eno, before later moving to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had dragged him to court in 2019 over allegations that he received 12 exotic vehicles worth over N254 million as bribes while serving as Finance Commissioner and Chairman of the Inter-Ministerial Direct Labour Coordinating Committee. The gifts allegedly came from companies linked to oil marketer Olajide Omokore, an associate of former Petroleum Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke, in connection with over N3 billion in state contracts.

Prosecutor Ekele Iheanacho (SAN) led the EFCC team before Justice Agatha Okeke of the Federal High Court in Uyo. On December 1, 2022, the trial judge convicted Bassey Akpan on all seven counts bordering on corruption, money laundering and abuse of office, sentencing him to seven years imprisonment on each count – though the terms were to run concurrently. The court also ordered restitution of N204 million.

Dissatisfied, the former senator approached the Court of Appeal, which upheld the conviction but introduced an option of fine and failed to fully enforce the restitution order. That decision was challenged at the Supreme Court, bringing the protracted legal battle to a close on Friday.

With the apex court’s verdict now final, Albert Bassey Akpan must begin serving his term immediately, while also parting with the N204 million to the Akwa Ibom State Government.

The ruling has been hailed by anti-graft watchers as a strong message against high-profile corruption, especially involving public officials who allegedly converted state resources into personal luxury assets during their time in office.