The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has secured the conviction of a 24-year-old tiler, Yusuf Ibrahim from Ajeromi Ifelodun LGA of Lagos State for cybercrime.
Yusuf was convicted alongside Abdulazeez Ademola from Oyan in Odo-Otin LGA of Osun State and Nurudeen Abdulmajeed from Ile-odo compound, Lasoju in Asa LGA of Kwara State by Justice Mahmoud Abdulgafar of a Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin
Yusuf, Abdulazeez and Nurudeen had upon arraignment, pleaded guilty to the separate charges preferred against them.
Charge against Yusuf Ibrahim
The charge against Yusuf reads: “That you, Yusuf Ibrahim, sometime between May 2022 and November 2022 in Ilorin, within the jurisdiction of this court, did cheat by personation when you pretended to be one Krissy Rivera, a female resident of the United States of America.
“And in that guise induced one Keith, a male resident of the United States of America to send you Apple gifts cards worth the sum of $375 and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 321 of the Penal Code Law and Punishable under section 324 of the Penal Code ”
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The charge against Nurudeen reads:
“That you, Nurudeen Abdulmajeed sometime in April 2023, in Ilorin, Kwara State within the jurisdiction of this court did cheat by personation when you pretended to be one Kelly Lochlan via your Instagram App and fraudulently deceived Colby Myers to send 240 Australian Dollars to you, thereby committed an offence contrary to section 321 of the Penal Code Law and Punishable under section 324 of the same law.”
Charge against Mustapha Kaigama
In the course of the trial, counsel to the EFCC, Mustapha Kaigama urged the court to take judicial notice of the admittance of guilt by the defendants and the uncontroverted evidence adduced by the prosecution to convict them as charged.
Justice Abdulgafar in his judgment on July 10, 2023, agreed that the prosecution had proved the case against the defendants to warrant their conviction.
Consequently, the Judge handed six months suspended prison term to all three defendants.
In addition, Yusuf was ordered to forfeit his iPhone 12 Pro Max and the sum of $200 to the Federal Government, while
Abdulazeez also forfeits one iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone x, HP laptop, one MacBook, one Toyota Camry and the sum of $100 which he benefited from the crime to the Federal Government.
The court similarly ordered Nurudeen to forfeit one iPhone 6 and the sum of $100 all proceeds of his unlawful activities to the Federal Government.
