Four individuals identified as Promise Usman, Daniel Chinedu, Fahad Yusuf Badamasi, and Emmanuel Chidera Udochukwu have been convicted and sentenced to various jail terms for internet fraud in Kaduna State.
This follows the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) securing their conviction before Justice A.Isyaka of the Kaduna State High Court, sitting in Kaduna.
According to the EFCC, they were prosecuted by its Kaduna Zonal Directorate on separate one-count charge bordering on impersonation, cheating, and obtaining by false pretence.
The charge against Usman reads: “That you Promise Usman ( a.k.a Maryam Muhammed) (m), sometime in 2025 at Kaduna within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, cheated several unsuspecting victims of the total sum of ₦450,000.00 ( Four Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira, only) when you pretended to be Maryam Mohammed; an investment broker on ‘Facebook’ (an online social media application), which you knew to be false and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 308 of the Kaduna State Penal Code Law of 2017 and punishable under section of the same law.”
That of Chinedu reads: “That you, Daniel Chisom Chinedu ( a.k.a Reese Witherspoon) sometime, between April-August 2024 in Kaduna within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did commit an offence to wit: cheating by impersonation when you falsely represented yourself as Reese Witherspoon and under such assumed identity, induced one Gene Virmilya to send you the total sum of $500 ( Five Hundred United States of America Dollars, only) and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 308 of the Kaduna State Penal Code Law, 2017 and punishable under Section 309 of the same law.”
The Commission noted that they all pleaded “guilty”, following which the prosecution counsel, M.O. Arumemi asked the court to convict and sentence them accordingly.
However, the defence counsel pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy, stating that they had become remorseful of their actions.
Justice Isyaka convicted and sentenced Udochukwu and Badamasi to two years imprisonment each or to pay a fine of ₦300,000. Similarly, Udochukwu forfeited his Huawei Y6 Pro 2020 mobile phone, while Badamasi forfeited his iPhone 7 mobile phone, both being the tools of their crime to the federal government.
Usman was convicted and sentenced to five years imprisonment or to pay a fine of ₦200,000. He also forfeited an iPhone 13 (128gb) to the federal government.
In the same vein, Chinedu was convicted and sentenced to five years imprisonment or to pay a fine of ₦150,000. In addition, he forfeited his iPhone 16 Pro, iPad Pro, and the sum of US $500, being the tools and proceeds of his crime respectively, to the federal government.
“The convicts were arrested by the Kaduna Zonal Directorate of the EFCC in Mahuta metropolis, Babar Saura and Sabo areas of the state, following credible intelligence that exposed their fraudulent internet activities,” the anti-graft agency said.
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