A Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos State has slammed a 27-year-jail term on a Nigerian American-trained medical doctor, John Nweke, for fraudulently obtaining goods worth N35 million from Konga Online Shopping Limited. The goods included 19 expensive smartphones and two cameras.
Spokesman for the Police Special Fraud Unit in Lagos State, Mr. Eyitayo Johnson, said in a statement that the convict and two others were arraigned in 2016 before Justice Abdulazeez Anka for conspiracy and obtaining property under false pretences.
“They were charged under the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act, No. 14 of 2006. On February 14, 2022, the Honourable Court found the defendant guilty as charged and sentenced him to 27 years imprisonment without an option of fine and ordered him to pay the money back to the victim of the fraud as restitution. The two accomplices, Stephen AnekeIgwe (now deceased) and Kelechi Emenike, were later discharged,” he said.
In another development, Johnson said an appellant and four others were successfully prosecuted in 2019 before Honourable Justice I. N. Buba of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, for conspiracy and obtaining the sum of N187 million from one Mr. Tayo Adeitan, under false pretenses.
“The appellant was convicted, sentenced to 20 years imprisonment without an option of fine and ordered to pay back the money to the victim of the fraud, as restitution. In the same year, 2019, he filed an appeal against his conviction and sentence. On February 4, 2022, the Court of Appeal upheld the argument of the Police Special Fraud Unit, dismissed the appeal and affirmed the conviction and sentence,” he said.
Similarly, he said another appellant – a corporate entity owned and operated by one Suleiman Yerima (now deceased) – was used as a front to fraudulently obtain the sum of N157 million from Dashad Bureau De Change Ltd, under false pretences. Johnson said in 2019, the Federal High Court convicted the company and sentenced it to a winding-up with all its assets/property forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria, as restitution.
“In 2020, the company appealed the judgement. However, on February 4, 2022, the Court of Appeal, Lagos, upheld the arguments of the Police Special Fraud Unit, dismissed the said appeal and affirmed the conviction and sentence of the appellant,” he said.
Furthermore, Johnson said another appellant and its’ alter-egos, Mfonini Unam and Uwem Antia, conspired together and used the appellant as a sham company to obtain the sum of N370m from Alh. Tayo Adeitan, also under false pretenses.
He stated that the company was convicted and sentenced to a winding-up while all its assets were forfeited to the Federal Government, as restitution.
“In 2020, the company appealed the judgement. On February 18, 2022, the Court of Appeal, Lagos, upheld Police Special Fraud Unit arguments against the appeal, dismissed the same and unanimously affirmed the conviction and sentence of the appellant,” he added.
