A female Evangelist, Ibironke Olaleye, a middle aged man, Sadiq Babatunde and a limited liability company, Resal Energy Ltd have been arraigned before a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, Southwest Nigeria over alleged N74 million fraud.
Ibironke Olaleye and Sadiq Babatunde were alleged to have used Resal Energy Ltd company to defraud a firm called Fast Plane Ltd.
According to the 10-count criminal charge filed before the court by the Police prosecuting counsel from the Legal/Prosecution Section of Federal Criminal Investigation Department, CIID, Alagbon, Lagos, Henry Obazi, the defendants were alleged to have at various times within Ikorodu, a suburb of Lagos State defrauded Fast Plane Ltd of various sums of money totaling N74,169, 000.
The two defendants were also alleged to have issued dud cheques to the tune of N9,900,000. They all pleaded not guilt to the charge
The presiding Judge, Saliu Saidu admitted them to bail in the sum of N20 million each and two sureties each in the same sum, one of the sureties must be a relation of each of the defendants with evidence of landed property in Lagos and residing in Lagos while the second surety must be a civil or public servant with either the Lagos State or Federal Government of Nigeria on Grade level 15 or above, serving in Lagos State; the registrar of the court must be satisfied with the sureties while the defendants and sureties must also submit their passport photographs to the registrar of the court.
“The defendants for the time being will be handed over to their counsel pending the perfection of their bail before the next adjourned date.
Thereafter, the case was adjourned to March 11 for trial to commence
The first defendant Ibironke Olaleye had late last year been arraigned before the court and she pleaded not guilty to the charge, consequent upon the amended charge dated January 14 in which Mr Sadiq Babatunde was joined as co-defendant to the charge, the matter started afresh, hence a fresh plea of not guilty by the defendants.
Some of the counts read: “That you Ibironke Olaleye ‘F’, Sadiq Babatunde ‘M’, Resal Energy Ltd and others still at large, sometimes in October 2015, at Ikorodu in the Lagos Judicial Division of this Honourable court did conspired amongst yourselves to commit felony to wit: Obtaining money by false pretence and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 8 (a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.
“That you Ibironke Olaleye (49), Sadiq Babatunde (35), Resal Energy Ltd and others still at large, on the same date, place and in the aforementioned judicial division of this Honourable court did by false pretence and with intent to defraud obtain the sum of Eight Million, Sixty Eight Thousand Naira ( N8,068,000) only from Fast Plane Ltd under the guise of supplying three trucks of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) at N81.5 per litre and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 1(a)(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.
“That you Ibironke Olaleye ‘F’, Sadiq Babatunde’M’ , Resal Energy Ltd and others still at large on the 26th day of October, 2015 at Ikorodu in the Lagos Judicial Division of this Honourable court did with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of N2,048,000 from Fast Plane Ltd under the guise of supplying 22,000 litres of DPK at N93 per litre and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 1 (a) (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.
“That you Ibironke Olaleye ‘F’, Sadiq Babatunde ‘M’, Resal Energy Ltd and others still at large sometimes in November 2016 at Ikorodu in the Lagos Judicial Division of this Honourable court, did by false pretence and with intent to defraud obtain the sum of Twenty Seven million, Seven hundred and twenty thousand (N27,720,000) from Fast Plane Ltd under the guise of supplying Eight trucks of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) at N105 per litre and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 1 (a) (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.
“That you Ibironke Olaleye ‘F’, Sadiq Babatunde ‘M’, Resal Energy Ltd and others still at large sometimes in September 2015, at Ikorodu in the Lagos Judicial Division, of this Honourable court did by false pretence and with intent to defraud, obtain the sum of Twelve million, five hundred thousand Naira (N12,500,000) from Fast Plane Ltd under the guise of using the money to pay for the Approval and Penalty Default Fees which you failed to pay to State Government and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 1 (a) (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006.
“That you Ibironke Olaleye ‘F’ and Resal Energy Ltd sometimes in March 2016 at Ikorodu in the Lagos Judicial Division of this Honourable court did issue Zenith Bank Plc cheque number 19126007 dated 13th of March, 2016 in favour of Fast Plane Ltd for the sum of Nine million,Nine hundred thousand Naira (N9,900,000) which was presented for payment within three months after the date of the cheque, but was dishonoured on the ground that no funds or insufficient funds were standing to your credit at the Zenith Bank Plc on which the cheque is drawn and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 1 (1)(a)(i) of the dishonoured cheques ( Offences) Act, Cap D 11 LFN, 2004.”

By Akin Kuponiyi