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Lecturer, twins jailed for Internet fraud, love scam in Kwara

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A lecturer at the Kwara State College of Health Technology, Offa, Abdullahi Opashola, and twin brothers, Taiye and Kehinde Adebayo, on Thursday, were convicted by Justice Adenike Akinpelu of the Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin, over offences bordering on impersonation and Internet fraud.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) prosecuted Opashola on a separate one-count charge, while the Adebayos were prosecuted on seven counts each, which they all pleaded guilty to.

In a statement released by Wilson Iwijaren, Head, Media and Publicity, EFCC, the charge against Opashola read: “That you, Opashola Abdullahi, (alias Devin Snow), sometime in August 2020 in Ilorin, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, did attempt to cheat by impersonation, by portraying yourself as a female, named Devine Snow, via your email address, devinesnow677@gmail.com, to one Eugene Myvett, to induce him to send you $200, a representation you knew to be false, thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 95 of the Penal Code and punishable under Section 324 of the same law.”

Meanwhile, the charge against Taiye read: “That you, Taiye Adebayo, sometime in January 2020, at Ilorin, within the judicial division of the Kwara State High Court, did cheat one Gary Brenton, who you met on TWOO dating site, of the sum of $490 received via gift cards when you pretended to be a female, thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 320 of the Penal Code and punishable under Section 322 of the same Penal Code.”

Following the guilty plea of the defendants, two operatives of the EFCC, Paul Kera and Emezie Dominic testified against Opashola and the twins, respectively.

Delivering judgment on the two cases, Justice Akinpelu found Opashola guilty of the charge against him and sentenced him to four months’ imprisonment, however, the 26-year-old lecturer was given an option to pay a fine of N150,000.

Meanwhile, for Taiye and Kehinde, Justice Akinpelu pronounced each of them guilty as charged and sentenced them to 42 months imprisonment each (six months on each of the seven counts) preferred against them, however, she gave the brothers an option of fine of N50,000 on each of the count.

He ordered that the laptops and phones used by the convicts to commit the crimes to be forfeited to the Federal Government.

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Adebisi Ademola Offa Health Tech lecturer sentenced for romance scam

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Adebisi Ademola, a lecturer at the Kwara State College of Health Technology, Offa, has been sentenced to six months imprisonment over love scam.

The sentence was handed down today by Justice Sikiru Oyinloye of Ilorin high court.

Ademola,38, was among the thirty-three suspected internet fraudsters arrested on 14 September 2020.

The arrest was in the course of a raid of some hideouts by EFCC officials.

He was prosecuted by the EFCC on one count of romance scam, an offence punishable by Section 95 of the Penal Code Law of Northern Nigeria.

According to the charge, Ademola impersonated a white foreigner Dawn Ayero sometime in September, 2020.

Using Ayero’s guise, Ademola then befriended Donald Oakes.

He sought to fleece him using the cloned gmail account: dawnayero@gmail.com.

The defendant pleaded guilty to the charge when it was read to him.

Following his ‘guilty plea’, counsel to the EFCC, Andrew Akoja, invited to the witness box, one Olumide Olasode, an operative of the Commission to review the facts of the case.

He narrated how intelligence report led to the arrest of the defendant on September 14, 2020 at Offa area of Kwara State.

Petition from concerned citizens of Offa, statement of the defendant and all the fraudulent messages printed out of his email were tendered and admitted in evidence by the Court.

Akoja, thereafter, urged the Court to convict the defendant based on his plea, the exhibits tendered and the evidence of the sole prosecution witness (PW1)

Consequently, Justice Oyinloye found Ademola guilty of the charge and accordingly sentenced him.

He, however, gave him an option of fine of N50,000.

The judge in addition, ordered the forfeiture to the Federal Government of the convict’s phone, used as instrument to perpetrate the crime.

Entertainment

Court sends Ilorin ‘yahoo boy’ to prison over love scam

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A 34-year-old graduate, Kelvin Isioma Monye, was on Monday February 15, 2021 sentenced to six months imprisonment by Justice Mahmood Abdulgafar of the Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin, having found him guilty of offences bordering on romance scam.

Monye, a graduate of Agricultural Science, was arraigned on a two-count charge by the Ilorin Zonal Office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

His problem started on January 12, 2021 when some concerned residents of Tanke area in Ilorin petitioned the Commission over the activities of some internet fraudsters around the neighbourhood. A statement by head, media and publicity of the EFCC, Wilson Uwujaren, said Investigations into the petition led to his arrest.

Particulars of count 2 of the charge read:”That you, Kelvin Isioma Monye (alias: Hassan George), sometime in the month of June 2018, in Ilorin within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did cheat by personation, by portraying yourself as a white male named Hassan via your email address kelvinmonye37@gmail.com to one Louise Evan and induced her to send you $1000 in gift cards, a representation you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 324 of the Penal Code Law.”

He pleaded ‘guilty’ to the two counts.

While reviewing the facts of the case, Olasode Olumide, an operative of the EFCC told the court that Monye was arrested on January 13, 2021.

“He was profiled and in the process an iPhone 6 and a Sony Laptop were recovered from him”, Olumide said.

The witness said several fraudulent documents were printed out from Monye’s email address in the presence of his lawyer. He stated that further findings showed that the defendant was a Nigerian, but claimed to be an American citizen.

The witness, however, informed the court that the defendant in the course of investigation brought a draft of N460,000 as restitution of his crime”

In his judgment, Justice Abdulgafar convicted and sentenced Monye to three months imprisonment on each of the two counts, adding that the sentences would run concurrently.

The judge, in addition ordered that the iPhone 6 and Sony Laptop which were used as instruments of the crime be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria, including the sum of N460,000 which he restituted .

Entertainment

Corps member, one other arraigned for alleged love scam

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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Monday, February 1, 2021 arraigned a serving corps member, Sam Abiola and one Adebiyi Sodiq on separate charges bordering on love scam before Justice Adenike Akinpelu of a Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin.

Abiola, who is currently serving in Kogi State was arraigned on one count charge, while four counts were preferred against Sodiq, to which they pleaded ‘guilty’.

The charge against Abiola reads:”That you, Sam Abiola ( Missie Bonie) sometime between July, 2019 and September, 2019 in Ilorin within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did cheat by personation when you pretended to be one Missie Bonie a white female with gmail account, missiebo271@gmail.com, and fraudulently deceived one Rick to send $550 (Five Hundred and Fifty Dollars) to you through gift card after you made him believe you were in love with him and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 321 of the Penal Code and punishable under Section 324 of the same Penal Code”

For Sodiq, count three of the charge reads:”That you, Adebiyi Sodiq, (Alias: Maria Monica sometime in the month of August 2020, in Ilorin, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did cheat by personation via your email address terrellwhite856@gmail.com to one Manny, by portraying yourself as a white female named Maria and induced him to send you his Cash App, a representation you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 324 of the Penal Code and punishable under the same Section of the Law”

Upon Abiola’s guilty plea, the prosecuting counsel, O. B Akinsola, invited to the witness box one Ali Mohammed, an operative of the EFCC to review the facts of the case.

Mohammed narrated how the defendant was arrested based on the anonymous petition received by the Commission on the activities of fraudsters around Offa area of Kwara State. Documents showing fraudulent messages printed out of the email of the defendant were tendered and admitted in evidence.

In a similar fashion, Sesan Ola, prosecuting for EFCC on Sodiq’s case called on Eze Uchenna, an operative of the Commission to review the facts of the case. Uchenna also narrated the defendant’s involvement in the alleged offence and tendered documents which were admitted in evidence.

Justice Akinpelu, while discharging the witnesses fixed February 11, for judgement.

It would be recall that the Ilorin Zonal Office of the EFCC on September 14, 2019 executed an operation at Offa in Offa Local Government Area of Kwara State where about 33 suspected fraudsters were arrested for various offences bordering on internet fraud.

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