Ndudi Anyim
A couple, Ebiesuwa Abayomi Fredrick and Tinuola Idayat Oyegunle, have been sentenced to 40 years imprisonment each over a N53 million fraud.
The couple had allegedly fleeced a woman, Dunni Olateru Olagbegi, of N53, 713, 260, in cash and bank transfer in pretense of wanting to conduct a spiritual cleansing to avert mysterious death.
The duo were sentenced by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court sitting, in Ibadan, Oyo State, on Monday.
The court found the couple guilty on all four counts of Conspiracy and Obtaining by False Pretence brought against them by the Ibadan Zonal office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
A statement by the EFCC said, “The victim had, sometime, in May 2013, boarded a taxi cab with three other passengers who, unknown to her, were members of a syndicate of fraudsters.
“As soon as she entered the vehicle, she heard the three other supposed passengers arguing about a Ghana-Must-Go bag filled with US Dollars in the boot of the car.
“Moments later, one of the syndicate members told her that she must be cleansed to avert sudden and mysterious death having heard their discussion.
“She was taken to an unknown destination, where she subsequently started giving the Defendants, and the other members of the syndicate (at large) various sums in cash and bank payment totaling N53, 713, 260, to buy instruments for the cleansing of United States Dollar notes, which she allegedly sourced from the sale of her properties in both Ibadan and Lagos.”
The Commission also said, in the course of investigation, It was discovered that over N9 million was paid into the second Defendant, Tinuola Idayat Oyegunle’s account, domiciled in one of the third generation banks; apart from other funds traced to the first Defendant, Ebiesuwa Abayomi Fredrick’s account.
The EFCC’s statement continued, “It was also discovered that the first Defendant built Victoria East Park Hotel & Suite located at Igbogbo, Ikorodu, Lagos State, from the proceeds of the crime,” it said.
In his judgment, Justice Abdulmalik found the couple guilty of the four-count charge and sentenced both of them to 10 years imprisonment on each of the four counts.
However, while Ebiesuwa’s prison term takes effect from June 19, 2017 when he was arrested, Tinuola’s time in the Custodial Centre will start counting from May 26, 2017 when she was arrested.
The Judge also ordered that Victoria East Park Hotel & Suite be sold and the proceed, if not up to N53, 713, 260 be returned to the victim in the case and if it exceeds, the balance be paid into the Federal Government’s account. The sentences are also to run concurrently.
One of the counts reads: “That you, Ebiesuwa Abayomi Fredrick, Tinuola Idayat Oyegunle and (others still at large) between 28 March,n2014 at Ibadan, within the jurisdiction of this honorable court, with intent to defraud did obtain by false pretense, the sum of N9,352,100, only, from one Dunni Olateru-Olagbegi, under the pretense that the money was to be used to purchase instrument for the cleansing of United States of American Dollar notes, which pretense you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 1 (1) & (2) and punishable under section 1 (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2016.”