Internet Fraudster Bags Six-month Imprisonment in Kwara

 

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ilorin zonal office in Kwara State on Thursday secured the conviction and imprisonment of a 35-year-old Stephen Olarewaju Odanye for six months before a state High Court in Ilorin.

Odanye had last Wednesday pleaded guilty to the one-count charge preferred against him by the EFCC.

The Charge read: "That you, Stephen Olarewaju Odanye (also knows as Raymond Sullivan), sometime in September 2019 or thereabout in Ilorin,  Kwara State, within the jurisdiction of this court attempted to commit an offence of cheating by pretending and presenting yourself as one Lynn Smith (a Whiteman), a supplier of engineering and construction equipment, who lives in Washington, United States, as it is contained in your email account- raysulivan@yahoo.com,-and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 95 and 321 of the penal code law and punishable under section 322 of the same act."

Giving his judgment yesterday, Justice Abdulgafar said: "The defendant was arraigned on a one-count charge of attempting to commit an offence of cheating by pretending and representing one Lynn Smith, an offence contrary to section 95 of the penal code law.

"The prosecution called one witness, Olamide Sadiq, an operative of the EFCC, who narrated to this court of how the defendant was arrested and items recovered from his laptop computer."

The judge said the prosecution was able to prove its case beyond reasonable doubt as the evidence of the sole witness was not challenged.

He added: "I found you Stephen Olarewaju Odanye guilty of one-count charge of attempting to cheat by impersonation, and hereby sentenced you to a six-month imprisonment.

Justice Abdulgafar further directed that the convict's laptop and mobile phones be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.