An Ikorodu-based
herbalist, Mr. Ojo Oladire Abayomi and his
accomplice Emmanuel Oyedele have been convicted by
Justice M. Olokoba of Ikeja High Court, Lagos. The
duo were found guilty in a six count charge
bordering on conspiracy and obtaining money under
false pretences, brought against them by the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
They were
sentenced to 16 and four years imprisonment
respectively. As restitution, they have refunded the
sum of N470, 000 and forfeited a Mazda 626 car,
being part of the proceeds of the crime, to the
victim. In addition, they are to refund N2.7million
spread over 24 months at the rate of N115, 000 per
month; and forfeit a landed propriety in Ikorodu,
Lagos state.
A by Femi
Babafemi, EFCC`s head of media and publicity said
the journey to prison for the convicts, started in
2005 when the second convict, Oyedele, a native of
Aramoko, Ekiti
State
decided to defraud the victim who was his bosom
friend.
That early
morning in November 2005, 28 year- old Oyedele
capitalized on the consolidation in the banking
sector to sell a dummy to the victim who was a staff
of defunct Nigeria Habib Bank. The convict told the
victim, who trusted him being a close friend, that
in view of the banking consolidation and the specter
of job loses it was not unlikely that he too could
become a victim of retrenchment. To forestall such
calamity befalling him, he needed to insulate
himself by obtaining some charms and getting
spiritually immunized.
The victim, in
the desperation to retain his job, swallowed the
bait and followed Oyedele to the shrine of the first
convict at Ikorodu. The first convict, Abayomi, a
bigamist with 17 children, gave the victim a charm
and collected N60, 000. Between November 2005 and
January 2006, they collected N3.5million from the
victim; yet he lost his job.
Having come to
the painful realization that he had been duped, he
reported the matter to EFCC. The convicts were
consequently arrested and, during interrogation,
confessed to have dubiously collected only
N1.2million from the victim. Abayomi told the
interrogators that Oyedele was his ‘catcher’ and
that he gave Oyedele N1.2 million from the money and
that he expended what was left on the funeral of his
late father.
The convicts have
since begun a new life in jail after being handed
their jail terms last Tuesday. |
