COURTROOM NEWS 29/06/2022
Four Cybercrime Fraudsters Jailed in Ilorin
An air conditioner installer, Pelumi Oluwatimileyin Sunday and three others have been jailed by the Federal High Court in Ilorin, over offences bordering on cybercrime.
The three other convicts are Uloko George Ojonugwa, a student of Federal University, Lokoja; Godspower Fatodun Sesan, from Ilawe-Ekiti in Ekiti South-West Local Government Area of Ekiti State and one Blessing Tope Abejide.
They were prosecuted on separate charges before Justice Muhammed Sani of the Federal High Court sitting in Ilorin by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
They all pleaded guilty to their respective charges.
Following their pleas, Innocent Mbachie and Sesan Ola, who prosecuted the cases on behalf of the EFCC reviewed the facts of the cases.
They tendered the extra-judicial statements of the defendants, phones and laptops recovered from them at the point of arrest and all the fraudulent messages printed from their devices, which the court admitted in evidence.
The prosecuting counsels urged the court to convict the defendants in line with the guilty plea they entered, their confessional statements and all the exhibits tendered.
Delivering judgement, Justice Sani, said the court was satisfied that the prosecution had proved its cases beyond reasonable doubt and pronounced them guilty.
The judge sentenced Pelumi to three years imprisonment with an option of N200,000 fine, while Godspower bagged two years imprisonment with an option of N324,817 fine.
The court also ordered that the phones, which Godspower used to perpetrate the crime be forfeited to the federal government.
Uloko was equally sentenced to three years imprisonment with an option of N739,468.00 fine.
The court also sentenced Blessing to one-year imprisonment on count one with an option of N100,000 fine, and three years imprisonment on count two or a fine of one hundred percent of what he benefited.