Court jails 3 for impersonation

The Federal High Court sitting in Ibadan has sentenced three persons to prison terms for impersonation.

The trio, who were found guilty of criminal impersonation, were Augustine Ekeson, Obinna Ureahi Ifeanyi and Osho Olalekan Micheal.

They were convicted in cases filed against them by the Ibadan zonal office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

After considering the facts of an amended one-count charge against Obinna and Ifeanyi, Justice Patricia Ajoku pronounced them guilty and sentenced them to two years imprisonment each.

The duo had earlier been arraigned on a three-count charge based on the allegations raised against them in a petition received from one Mobolade Dele Akinbuluma, a doctoral student of the University of Ibadan.

Akinbuluma alleged that the accused hacked into her email account to misrepresent themselves as staff of a Kenyan university where she was to undertake a study as part of her doctorate programme.

She was, in the process, defrauded of N875,490 (Eight hundred and seventy five thousand four hundred and ninety Naira). The duo pleaded not guilty to the charge but later approached the EFCC for a plea bargain.

Following an agreement on the terms of the plea bargain, they were re-arraigned on Thursday on a one-count amended charge.

The latest charge reads: “That you Augustine Ekeson M and Obinna Ureahl Ifeanyi on or about the 3rd of December 2015 at Ibadan within the jurisdiction of this honourable court did conspire amongst yourself to commit felony to wit: fraudulently impersonated one Mrs. Lillian Igweta, a secretary to Professor Torto with intent to gain advantage for yourself and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 27 (1) (b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention etc) Act, 2015 and punishable under Section 22(4) of the same Act.”

They pleaded guilty to the charge, prompting a prayer by the EFCC counsel, Ifeanyi Agwu, for their conviction.

The presiding judge accordingly sentenced them to two years imprisonment each.

In a related development, Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court in Ibadan also jailed Osho on Thursday for an internet-related offence.

Osho was found guilty of falsely representing himself to be an American citizen named Jack, using same to defraud one Maria. He was sentenced to six months in prison and ordered to make restitution of $200 (two hundred United States Dollars) to his victim.

The jail term takes effect from April 3, 2019, commencing from the day he was arrested. He is also to forfeit to the Federal Government of Nigeria items recovered from him in the course of an investigation.

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