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A 60-year-old man, Charles Jide-Oni, who claimed to be a professor at the Obafemi Awolowo University (O.A.U), Ile Ife, Osun State, was arraigned at a Federal High Court, Lagos for allegedly obtaining money under false pretence and advance fee fraud.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Ibadan zonal office arraigned the ‘professor’ and 12 Internet fraudsters before Justice Nicholas Oweibo at the Federal High Court on Wednesday, September 4, 2019.
Jide-Oni’s arraignment was a sequel to EFCC’s findings on the illegal financial outfit he floated through which he allegedly swindled his victims of several millions of Naira.
Some of the victims had earlier written a petition to the commission, which led to the investigations that indicted him in the fraudulent act.
Due to the bail application filed by his lawyer, Justice Oweibo granted Jide-Oni bail in the sum of N10 million and two sureties in like sum.
The other suspects are, Olaleye Kolapo, Madukife Ifeanyi Azuka, Fatanmi Yinka Sunday, Adebayo Bolaji Adeyinka, Adeleke Peter and Adebowale Fadairo.
Others are Oyewunmi Tolulope Michael, Bello Ayoade Jalal Arikalam, Owolabi Toheeb Tolulope, Abdullahi Abdulazeez Oluwatobi, Temitope Fatolu and Adesina Adewale.
Fatolu (aka Gold Crumb), however, opted for a plea bargain and pleaded guilty to a one-count amended charge of fraudulent impersonation in the court.
He was subsequently sentenced to one-year imprisonment at the Ilesha Prison with effect from June 20, 2019, when he was arrested.
He was asked to refund $500 to his victim and forfeit his iPhone 6, Nokia 103 and HP Laptop to the Federal Government, being part of the benefits of his fraudulent act.
Unlike Fatolu, 11 other suspects pleaded not guilty to the charges preferred against them after which EFCC Counsel, Ben Ubi, asked the court for an order to remand them in prison and fix dates for the hearing of their cases.
The court granted the prayer and fixed October 7, 9 and 14, 15 and 21, 2019 for the hearings.
Meanwhile, the Benue State zonal office has stated that the commission arrested 48 Internet fraudsters, otherwise called yahoo boys and other criminal suspects who dupe unsuspecting members of the public since assumption of office in the state from January 2019 to date.
EFCC’s Head of Operations, Makurdi zonal office comprising Benue, Taraba and Plateau states, Johnson Babalola, who stated this in Makurdi, said 13 of the suspects were already facing prosecution, while three have been convicted in accordance with the laws of the land.