Judge sentences lawyer, estate agent to 100 years for fraud
By Tony Amokeodo
Friday, 11 Feb 2011




Justice Inumidun Akande



A Lagos High Court in Ikeja on Thursday sentenced a lawyer with 25 years of legal practice in property and commercial law, Kole Bello, and an estate agent, Olayinka Ajiboluwaduro, to 100 years imprisonment without an option of fine for conspiracy, fraud and obtaining money under false pretences.


In his judgment, Justice Joseph Oyewole sentenced the convicts to 10 years imprisonment each on each of the 10- count charge preferred against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.


Bello (46) and Ajiboluwaduro (42) were convicted for defrauding two persons of N10m that was meant for the purchase of a plot of land at Plot 877, Block 34 Omole Housing Estate Phase 11.


The convicts would however spend 10 years behind bars since the prison term would run concurrently.


Justice Oyewole also held that the jail term for the lawyer would commence from February 10, 2010 when the sentence was pronounced on him, having been previously granted bail by the court.


But the judge added that the estate agent’s sentence should run concurrently from October 4, 2007 when he was remanded in prison.


The EFCC had arraigned the convicts on October 1, 2007 on the 10-count charge of conspiracy and obtaining money by false pretence.


According to the EFCC, the offence is contrary to Section 8(a) and 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act, No. 13 of 1995, as amended, by Act No. 62 of 1999.


The anti-graft agency EFCC had in their information sheet, claimed that Bello and Ajiboluwaduro allegedly conspired with a suspect, Frank (now at large) who impersonated the original owner of the landed property, Alhaji Suraju Ayilara, to collect the said N10m from a banker, Mr. Emmanuel Taylor and a businessman, Mr. Mark Eziubochi, as payment for the property.


Justice Oyewole said, “The court cannot go outside this law but it will however consider the fact that the defendants are first time offenders and they must also make restitution to the complainant.


“The defendants are not availed by the cloaks of professional capacity under which they both seek to hide as the evidence of the witnesses showed that they both actively worked with the impostor to perpetrate the fraud.”


The judge also held that the EFCC had proved its case beyond any iota of doubt.


He said, “From the evidence before this court, the first convict (Bello) used his supposed professional, religious and political standing in the society to influence the victims to pay the N10m to the impostor in his law office.


“The claim that the second convict (Ajiboluwaduro) has never seen the impostor before the transaction is not true because he worked in concert with him by putting forward a personal family relationship with the same impostor to achieve the same purpose.”


Justice Oyewole further held that the testimonies of the defendants were riddled with inconsistencies which cannot hold water and did not assist their credibility, saying that they actually conspired with the impostor (Frank) to commit the fraud.

http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art20110211243620