New Telegraph

Internet fraudster convicted, gets N3m fine

Justice Mojisola Dada of an Ikeja Special Offences Court, Lagos, yesterday convicted and sentenced an internet fraudster, popularly known as Yahoo Boy, Sodiq Adewale, to one year’s imprisonment. He was however, given an option of N3 million fine. Adewale was convicted for being in possession of forged documents, which he used to defraud his victims to the tune of $87,300. The convict was re-arraigned before the court on a one-count amended charge by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The prosecutor, Mr. Fadekemi Giwa, told the court that the convict, who was previously arraigned before the court, had approached the commission for a plea bargain agreement. She told the court that following Adewale’s decision, the charge against him was amended and a plea bargain agreement was signed by the convict, his counsel and herself, the prosecutor. Justice Dada thereafter ordered that the amended charge be read to the convict for his plea to be taken. And upon the reading of the charge, Adewale pleaded guilty.

The charge reads: “Sodiq Adewale, on or about the 25th day of January, 2021, Lagos, had in your possession a document titled ‘Official Check No. 029356348’ valued $87,300 containing false pretences which you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 320 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State.” In his allocutus, counsel to the convict, Ademola Adefolaju, pleaded with the court for leniency. He said Adewale was a first time offender, who did not waste the precious time of the court. Adefolaju added that his client had promised not to engage in any fraudulent act and thereby urged the court to give him an option of fine in lieu of a custodial sentence.

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