Court Convicts Two over N10m Dud Cheque
*NBA Port Harcourt Branch Partners EFCC
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on June 17, 2021 secured the conviction of Yinka Bello and Energy Fields Nigeria Limited before Justice K. N. Ogbonnaya of the Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja.
The conviction followed a change of plea by the defendants from “not guilty” to “guilty”, pursuant to a plea bargain agreement with the prosecution.
The defendants were first arraigned on March 29, 2021, for offences bordering on the issuance of dud cheque, contrary to the Dishonored Cheques Offences Act Cap 102 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria.
Upon arraignment, the defendants pleaded not guilty and the 1st defendant was ordered remanded in a Correctional Centre.
After three months, the defendants entered into a plea bargain negotiation with the prosecution, leading to the amendment of the charge.
At the resumed trial on Thursday, June 17, the 1st defendant pleaded guilty to the amended charge.
The charge reads; “That you Energy Fields Nigeria Limited on or about the 31st day of October 2016 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court with the knowledge that you had insufficient funds in your account issued to Habul Nigeria Limited a UBA Bank cheque no. 057080099 dated 31st October 2016 in the sum of N10, 000,000.00 being refund of money advanced to you by Habiba Umar Bello. This said cheque when presented for payment within 3 months of issuance was dishonoured due to insufficient funds standing to the credit of the account to cover the face value of the cheque and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 1(1)(a) of the Dishonored Cheques Offences Act Cap 102 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria and punishable under section 1(1)(b)(I)(II) of the same Act 2007.”
Based on his plea, the prosecuting counsel, Ijeabalum Diribe prayed the court to convict and sentence the defendant in line with the plea bargain agreement.
Justice Ogbonnaya consequently convicted and sentenced the 1st defendant to a fine of N500, 000.00 (Five Hundred Thousand Naira). He was also ordered to refund the victim, the cumulative sum of N10,000,000.00, being the value of the dishonoured cheque.
The court also convicted and sentenced the 2nd defendant to a fine of N500, 000 (Five Hundred Naira).
“We Are Ready To Partner With The EFCC” – NBA
The Nigerian Bar Association, Port Harcourt Branch, has expressed its desire to partner with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, in its fight against corrupt practices.
This desire was expressed on Thursday, June 17, 2021 by the Chairman of the Association, Barrister Prince Nyekwere, while on a Courtesy Visit to the Port Harcourt Zonal Head of the EFCC, Assistant Commander of the EFCC, ACE Aliyu Naibi. According to him, the EFCC ” is a very important institution in Nigeria, fighting economic and financial crimes and that the NBA should be seen as a partner in progress. “We are ready to partner with the EFCC. Let the Commission take us as partners in progress and realise that as NBA, we want it to succeed in its assigned mandate”, he said.
Nyekwere stressed that the works of the EFCC are central to the growth and development of the nation because ” for any country to develop, it is important that investors and citizens have confidence in the system and if we allow criminals and criminality, especially in the area of economic and financial crimes, then the country will not move forward”.
The NBA Chairman noted that the task of prosecution of financial criminals by the EFCC required painstaking efforts and commitments. He, however, stressed that rules and procedures should always be followed in the interest of justice for all. He admitted that there are some ” bad eggs and Judases in the legal profession, but our responsibility is not to free criminals but to ensure that no one escapes justice and for those who did not commit any crime not to suffer”.
In his response, Naibi stated that EFCC was mindful of justice for every party involved in any matter because ” justice is one- either for the complainant; the accused; the law enforcement agencies; the society or the government. Justice is one and the interest is the overall good of the country and this is the interest the EFCC is working for”. He expressed satisfaction with the relationship of the Port Harcourt Zonal Office of the EFCC with the NBA, stressing that ” the relationship is good and robust”.
On the issue of investigations and prosecution, Naibi scored the EFCC high, pointing out that “Our investigations are always watertight. We have about 97% success rate in our prosecution and this is a fact that is open to everyone”. He assured the NBA of an open door system and called for more result-oriented collaboration between the two organisations
Enugu Student Bags 2 Years Imprisonment For Internet Fraud
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Enugu Zonal Office on June 18, 2021 secured the conviction of one Emmanuel Umahi (a.k.a Eddy Morem), a student, before Justice I.M Buba of the Federal High Court sitting in Enugu, Enugu State on one count charge bordering on Criminal impersonation with the intent to defraud.
The charge reads, “that you Emmanuel Umahi sometime in June 2021 in Enugu within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, fraudulently impersonated @eddy_morem, a citizen of Croatia, using an Instagram Account, with intent to obtain money from unsuspecting foreign nationals and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 22(3) (a) (b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Act, 2015 and punishable under Section 22(4) of the same Act.”
The defendant pleaded guilty when the charge was read to him prompting the prosecuting counsel, Michael Ani to ask the court to convict him.
Justice Buba in his judgment decried the incidence of cybercrimes, saying “This court takes cognizance that cyber crimes is on the increase. No nation will develop if its youths continue in crime. This court warns the defendant to desist from cybercrime or face the maximum consequence when next he appears before this court.”
The judge sentenced Emmanuel Umahi to 2 years imprisonment with an option of N150, 000(One Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira) fine.
