By Mikias Sebsibe
Tearful convicts of the 2010 FIFA World Cup scam pleaded for a reduced sentence at a hearing of the Federal High Court which convened on Wednesday to hear aggravating and mitigating circumstances for the sentencing, which is due to be announced on December 10. Five defendants including Askallukan Trading PLC and its general manager, Menna Terefe and three other employees of the company were found guilty late last week for defrauding over 1,200 people in relation to a trip to South Africa for the World Cup games. The court also found all the defendants guilty of the second charge - undertaking a business activity without a license.
The Second Criminal BPR bench of the Federal High Court was packed with mostly victims of the scam on Wednesday where the federal prosecutor called for the maximum penalty provided for under the provisions the defendants were charged under to be imposed. The Criminal Code of the country levies a maximum penalty of five years for each of the prosecution’s charge.
“The defendants defrauded over a thousand people, who are mostly low income earners from the southern part of the country,” the prosecutor told the court. “They were able to collect over 50 million birr from their act.”
“As a result of the scam some of the victims have lost their lives while some have gone insane,” the prosecutor told the court as an aggravating circumstance to the sentencing. More on Reporter
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