An Ikeja Special Offences Court on Monday convicted a businesswoman, Blessing Adanu, for defrauding a woman of N47.6 million on the pretext of supplying her agricultural produce.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Adanu traded under the name of Emerald Multipurpose Cooperative Society to defraud her victim in a purported agribusiness scheme.

Justice Mojisola Dada convicted Adanu on a two-count charge of obtaining money by false pretences and stealing.

Dada held that evidence before the court, including statements made by the convict during interrogations, proved all the essential ingredients of obtaining by false pretences and stealing.

Dada dismissed the argument of defence that the charges emanated from contractual disputes that were civil in nature.

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“As noted by the prosecution, most economic and financial crimes arose from transactions that had a semblance of contractual transactions.

“But along the line, a lot of factors come in to derail the smooth sail when the heart of man begins to dialogue with the devil to outsmart another person and he succumbs to it.

“The defendant’s oral testimony in court that the agribusiness was affected by flooding and Fulani herdsmen attack were an afterthought.

“She wanted to be living big at the expense of other people without counting the cost.

“Although the defendant seems to have absconded, having jumped bail graciously granted her by this court, the truth is that she cannot run away from justice.

“From the foregoing, therefore, evidence before the court clearly shows that the case against the defendant has been proved beyond every reasonable doubt on the two counts of obtaining the sum of N47.6 million under false pretences.

“I hereby declare the defendant guilty as charged on the two counts,” Dada said.

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NAN reports that the convict’s sentencing was, however, suspended in accordance with Sections 321 and 352 (5) of the Administration of Criminal Justice (ACJ) Act, 2015, in conjunction with Section 278 (1) of the ACJ Law 2015, pending when she will be apprehended and brought before the court.

Counsel to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Samuel Daji, had called three witnesses through whom several pieces documentary evidence were tendered and admitted against the convict.

Defence counsel, Mr Olarewaju Ajanaku, called four witnesses, including the defendant, who testified as the fourth witness.

After the closure of the case of the defence on June 30, 2022, the defendant stopped appearing in court.

Based on the above, Daji, on Nov.3, 2022, applied to the court to revoke the bail of the defendant and allow the trial to continue in her absence.

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There was no objection from defence.

Dada subsequently revoked the bail and issued a bench warrant for Adanu arrest.

The judge ordered that the EFCC should declare her wanted.

EFCC had said that the businesswoman committed the offences between Nov.30, 2018, and Jan. 11, 2019, in Lagos.

It said that she dishonestly stole and converted to her own use, a cumulative sum of N47.6 million from Mrs Favour Nnamani, in contravention of Sections 1(1) and 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006, and Section and 285 of the Criminal Law of Lagos, 2011. (NAN)

A convicted Nigerian fugitive, Florence Enwerim Onyegbu, was on Thursday, extradited to the United States of America, where she is wanted to answer to criminal charges bordering on the violation of the U.S. law involving the offer and payment of illegal remuneration in a health care matter.

Onyegbu ‘sextradition was coordinated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, following a request by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI, seeking assistance for her apprehension.

The EFCC said its investigations revealed that she had changed her name from Florence E. Onyegbu to Janet Boi in an attempt to remain hidden.

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But that she however ran out of luck when operatives of the EFCC swooped on her at her residence in the Ojodu area of Lagos on February 21, 2022.

The anti-graft agency said that upon her arrest, a national identity card with the name Janet Boi as well as a Texas driver’s license with the name Florence Enwerim Onyegbu were found on her.

The Commission, on March 22, 2023, handed over Onyegbu to the FBI, following an extradition order granted by Justice Z.B. Abubakar of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on December 2, 2022.

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It will be recalled that Onyegbu’s travails began after she was arrested on February 12, 2011 in the U.S. and subsequently sentenced to 46 months imprisonment, following a guilty plea , over the violation of the U.S. law bordering on the offer and payment of illegal remuneration in a health care matter.

Although she was ordered to report for service of her sentence on April 4, 2011, she failed to surrender on that date.

Consequently, she was further charged with failure to surrender for service of sentence in violation of U.S. Law on March 4, 2013.

A Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja on Thursday sentenced four men to death by hanging for armed robbery and kidnapping of a woman, Mrs Gloria Emole.

The convicts are Victor Chukwunonso, Ifeanyi Maduaka, Obinna Nwankwo and Richard Nwabueze.

Justice Lateef Lawal-Akapo held that the prosecution was able to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt.

The convicts were said to have committed the offences on November 19, 2012, at about 8.30 am.

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They were arraigned on July 13, 2013, and were remanded in prison custody.

The convicts were arraigned on a three-count bordering on conspiracy, armed robbery and kidnapping preferred against them by Lagos State.

The state Director of Public Prosecution, Dr Babajide Martins, had told the court during their arraignment that they kidnapped the victim who was about to leave her house at 7, Unity Street, Ogudu GRA, Lagos.

According to the prosecutor, the offences committed are contrary to and punishable under Sections 297,285 (2) a, and 291, of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State 2015.

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The victim was later released on November 22, 2012, after a ransom of $70,000 was paid by her husband.

“The defendants are sentenced to 10 years for the first count of conspiracy. They are hereby sentenced to death by hanging for the second count of armed robbery and sentenced to 21 years imprisonment for the third count of kidnapping,” Justice Lawal-Akapo held.