The Special Offences Court in Ikeja, Lagos State, has sentenced Ugwu Chijioke and Ibrahim Adekunle to a combined 46 years in prison for impersonating operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and executing a fake court order.
According to an EFCC statement on its Facebook page on Sunday, the convicts were arrested in May 2021 at New Horizon Estate, Lekki, Lagos. The arrest followed credible intelligence received by the commission, revealing that Chijioke and Adekunle were conducting an illegal operation. At the time of their arrest, fake EFCC identity cards, jackets, and a counterfeit court order purportedly from Mushin Magistrate Court were recovered.
The Lagos Command of the EFCC arraigned the men before Justice O.O. Abike-Fadipe on October 12, 2021. They faced an amended five-count charge that included impersonation, attempted property fraud, possession of false documents, and unlawful wearing of EFCC uniforms.
The EFCC statement detailed the charges: “Ugwu Pascal Chijioke and Ibrahim Sadiq Adekunle, on or about May 12, 2021, in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, by false pretence and with intent to defraud, attempted to obtain property from Oriyomi Johnson under the pretext of an order from the ‘Chief Magistrate Court, Lagos State Judiciary, Mushin, Lagos’ to seize property at New Horizon Estate, Lekki-Ikate, Lagos. This act contravenes Sections 8(b) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006, and is punishable under Section 11(3) of the same Act.”
Additionally, the charges included unlawfully wearing EFCC uniforms, in violation of Section 79(1)(b) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.
Both suspects pleaded guilty to the charges. Prosecutor Abdulhamid Tukur reviewed the case facts and requested the court to deliver a guilty verdict and impose the appropriate sentences.
Justice Abike-Fadipe found Chijioke and Adekunle guilty on all counts. They were each sentenced to seven years for counts one to three, one year for count four, and eight months for count five. The sentences will run concurrently.
Separately, report has it that on May 2 that the Nasarawa State Police Command arrested three individuals impersonating EFCC officials in Nasarawa Local Government Area. These suspects had reportedly launched an attack near the Federal Polytechnic in Nasarawa, robbing individuals and abducting a student, Adudu Kingsley, who was later released following the police’s efforts.
Comments