A Lagos High Court, Ikeja on Thursday, sentenced a trader, Aruna Adeshina, to a 21-year imprisonment for defrauding his clients of N4.2 million.
The court, presided over by Justice Adeniyi Onigbanjo, handed down the sentence after the defendant pleaded guilty to the three-count charge of obtaining money by false pretences preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The judge sentenced him to seven-year imprisonment on each of the counts.
Counsel to the EFCC, Mrs Bunmi Bosede, had alleged that Adeshina, in January 2008, collected various sums of money from the trio of Joy Fomah, Henry Fomah and Bakare Adeyinka.
Bosede said that the defendant obtained the money under the pretext of supplying the victims with various quantities of used batteries and magnesium cast.
According to her, the trader failed to supply the products after collecting the money, a development that prompted his clients to petition the EFCC.
She said the offence contravened Section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud-Related Offences Act No. 14, Laws of Federation of Nigeria, 2006.
The defendant was first arraigned on September 16, 2008 when he pleaded not guilty to the charge. But on April 29, this year, he pleaded guilty.
In his judgement, yesterday, Justice Onigbanjo said the sentences would run concurrently, starting from June 1,2010.
He also ordered that Adeshina’s two landed property in the Alagbado area of the state, which was initially seized by the EFCC, should be forfeited to his victims as restitution. Click to signup for FREE news updates, latest information and hottest gists everyday
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