Three Lira officials jailed four years over fraudulent land title scheme

LIRA – The Anti-Corruption Division of the High Court has sentenced three officials from Lira District Local Government to four years’ imprisonment each after finding them guilty of fraudulently acquiring public land. A private individual who facilitated the scheme was sentenced to one year in prison.

The convicted public officials are Opio Francis, the District Staff Surveyor; Otike Pabius, the District Natural Resources Officer; and Ogwanga Joel, a Cartographer attached to the Ministry of Lands’ Lira Zonal Office.

Also convicted was Atoo Rebecca, a sister to Opio Francis, in whose name the fraudulently acquired land was registered. She received a one-year prison sentence after the court found that, although she was not a public officer, she knowingly facilitated the fraudulent transaction.

Court heard that between February and August 2019, Lira District Local Government began processing a certificate of title for its land located at Ireda Estate. During the survey exercise, Opio Francis and Otike Pabius deliberately excluded a portion of the district land from the official survey.

The excluded land was then fraudulently surveyed and, with the assistance of Ogwanga Joel, a Freehold Certificate of Title for Plots 3–5 Ben Emor Road, Ireda Estate, was illegally procured and registered in the name of Atoo Rebecca.

Prosecutors told court that after obtaining the title, Atoo Rebecca sold the land to Olam Pius, with all the convicted persons participating in and witnessing the sale.

The accused were jointly charged by the State House Anti-Corruption Unit, the Criminal Investigations Directorate (CID), and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions after being arraigned before the Anti-Corruption Division on June 20, 2023.

After considering the evidence presented, the court found all four guilty of offences including abuse of office, fraudulent procurement of a certificate of title, and conspiracy to defraud.

In addition to the prison terms, the three public officials were barred from holding any public office for the next 10 years following their release, underscoring the court’s commitment to deterring corruption and abuse of public trust.

The conviction adds to ongoing efforts by anti-corruption agencies to recover public assets and hold accountable officials involved in the illegal acquisition and disposal of government property.