EFCC secures five convictions in Ilorin

By Steve Oni, Ilorin

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Ilorin Zonal Office has secured convictions of five persons prosecuted for their involvement in offences bordering on internet fraud and other fraud related offences.

The five defendants were on Tuesday convicted and sentenced to six months imprisonment, without an option of fine, in their separate charges brought against them before Justice Sikiru Oyinloye and Justice Mahmood Abdulgafar of the Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin.

The convicts are, Olamide Ijisesan, Ogundowole Tolulope, Abdullahi Abubakar, Chilaka Dickson and Olayiwola Azeez.

While Ogundowole Tolulope was convicted by Justice Sikiru Oyinloye, the remaining four fell under the hammer of Justice Mahmood Abdulgafar.

The charge against one of the convicts stated: “That you, Olamide Ijisesan, sometime in April 2016, at Ilorin, Kwara State within the jurisdiction of this honourable court cheated by pretending to be one Javier Cheryl, a white Caucasian female with gmail account, javiercheryl@yahoo.com and fraudulently induced one Javier Hernandez to deliver the cumulative sum of $350 (Three hundred and fifty United States Dollars) to you and thereby committed an offence contrary and punishable under section 325 of the penal code law.”

All the suspects pleaded guilty to their separate charges levelled against them by the anti graft body.

Prosecuting Counsel led by Mr. Blessing Akinsola told the court that the defendants had approached the Commission for plea bargain agreement and therefore urged the Judge to convict them according to the agreement, while all the defence counsel confirmed the position of the prosecution.

In arriving at the judgement, the court said the evidence of the prosecution was not challenged or controverted by the defendants.

“This Court has hereby convicted and sentenced the defendant to six months imprisonment.”

The court, however, ordered that items like phones, laptops and monies recovered from the convicts be forfeited to the federal government.