[News] Couple bags 40 years jail term for N53m fraud

A couple has been sentenced to 40 years imprisonment each.

Ebiesuwa Abayomi Fredrick and his wife, Tinuola Idayat Oyegunle were sentenced to 40 years imprisonment each by Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court sitting in Ibadan, Oyo State today, February 15, 2021.

They were found guilty on all four counts of conspiracy and obtaining by false pretence brought against them by the Ibadan Zonal office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

The couple, in a classic advance fee fraud scheme, scammed one Dunni Olateru Olagbegi of the sum of N53, 713, 260.00 (Fifty-Three Million, Seven Hundred and Thirteen Thousand, Two Hundred and Sixty Naira) in cash and bank transfer.

They claimed they were performing a spiritual cleansing in order to avoid calamitous consequence of mysterious sudden death having heard conversation by the syndicate about a Ghana-Must-Go bag stuffed with United States Dollar bills in the boot of a car. The victim was also tricked into bringing funds to cleanse supposed USD bills.

The victim had sometime in May 2013, boarded a taxi with three other passengers who, unknown to her, were members of a syndicate of fraudsters.  As soon as she entered the vehicle, she heard the three other supposed passengers arguing about a Ghana-Must-Go bag filled with US Dollars in the boot of the car.

Moments later, one of the syndicate members told her that she must be cleansed to avert sudden and mysterious death, having heard their discussion.

She was taken to an unknown destination, where she subsequently started giving the defendants, and the other members of the syndicate, who are currently at large, various sums in cash and bank payment, totaling N53, 713, 260.00 (Fifty-Three Million, Seven Hundred and Thirteen Thousand, Two Hundred and Sixty Naira) which she allegedly sourced from the sale of her properties in both Ibadan and Lagos, to buy instruments for the cleansing of United States Dollar notes, according to EFCC.