On June 1, 2017 the EFCC secured the conviction of Marcellinus Akochi Ezeoke before Justice Lawal Wada of the Kano State High Court on a one count charge of obtaining by false pretence.
The convict was arraigned on November 25, 2015 and pleaded not guilty to the charge. In the course of the trial, prosecution counsel Douglas I.
Gift called two witnesses and presented several exhibits to prove the case against the convict. The convict fraudulently obtained the sum of N1,010,000 (One Million, Ten Thousand Naira Only) from the complainant by falsely claiming that he was a car dealer based in Cotonou, Benin Republic.
Based on that, the complainant sent him the said sum for the purchase of a Peugeot 406 but the convict failed to deliver the vehicle and became incommunicado. In his judgment today, Justice Wada held that the prosecution had established the case against the convict beyond reasonable doubt and convicted him on count 2 of the charge.
Before the sentence, the convict pleaded for mercy. Consequently, Justice Wada sentenced him to two years imprisonment with the option of N50,000 fine. The convict was also ordered to restitute the sum of N1,000,000 (One Million Naira ) to the court.