Court jails two brothers, 33 others for Internet fraud in Ibadan

The Ibadan Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has secured the conviction of two siblings, Samuel Adedeji Adeboye and Charles Adedamola Adeboye and thirty-three (33) others for internet fraud before Justices Ladiran Akintola, Bayo Taiwo and O.S. Adeyemi of the Oyo State High Court, sitting in Ibadan.

The 33 convicts are: Oluwadamilola Michael Omotayo, Boluwatife Ajewole Alaran, Michael Damilare Badaru, Oyewole Ismail Oluwatayo, Mudashiru Oluwatobi Oyebamiji, Ebuka Michael Oluwatobi, Azeez Hammed Ademola, Adelayi Adetunji Wellington, Isaac Ifeoluwapo Oke, Muraina Toheeb Adeola, Hammed Ismaheel Ayomide, Adedayo Opeyemi Ogundele, Ajose Oluwaseun Alaba, Bolarinwa Tobi Samuel, Alabi Ayomide, Omodayo Obatomiwa Adedayo, Asoro Taiwo Oluwafemi and Sebili Ibrahim Sunday.

Others are: Seun Ebenezer Anjorin, Adewale festus Prosper, Adubi Oluwatimileyin Abiola, Lawal Qwwatullah Opeyemi, Jegede Boluwaji Victor, Waris Tomiwa Atanda, Adebayo Adeoye Okikiola, Opeyemi Uthman Adeleke, Michael Olalekan Akintola, Abdulazeez Taiwo Adisa, Ebuka Ogbonna Emmanuel, Augustine Chukwuka Okoh, Ayomide Temitope Adekunle, Edunjobi Toheeb Ayobami and Abdulganiyu Sakiru Adebayo.

They were prosecuted on separate one-count charge each that bordered on impersonation, obtaining by false pretence, retention of proceeds of crime and possession of fraudulent documents.

The charge against Samuel Adedeji Adeboye reads: “That you Adeboye on or about the 8th day of June 2024, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, with intent to defraud, falsely represented yourself as James Jonathan to Wendy Rose, which representation you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence of impersonation contrary to Section 484 of the Criminal Code Law of Oyo State, 2000.”

The charge against Charles Adedamola Adeboye reads: “That you, Charles Adedamola Adeboye sometime in July 2018, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, aided an internet fraudster, one Olowooye David (at large) by helping him and other internet fraudsters to receive funds, which form the proceed of obtaining money by false pretences, wherein you benefitted the total sum N200, 000.00 (Two Hundred Thousand Naira), thereby committed an offence of aiding the commission of felony: obtaining money by false pretence contrary to Sections 7 (b) and 419 of the Criminal Code Law Cap 30, Laws of Oyo State, 2000.”

All the defendants pled “guilty” to the charges when they were read to them, prompting prosecution counsel, Modupe Akinkoye, Oluwatoyin Owodunni, Chidi Okoli, Sanusi Galadanchi, Lanre Suleiman, Shamsuddeen Bashir and Mabas Mabur to pray the court to convict and sentence them accordingly.

Justice Akintola convicted and sentenced the Adeboye brothers to one-year imprisonment each, with N100,000.00 (One Hundred Thousand Naira) option of fine for Adedeji and N30,000.00 (Thirty Thousand Naira) for Adedamola.

He convicted and sentenced Omotayo, Alaran, Badaru, Oluwatayo, Oyebamiji, Oluwatobi, Ademola, Adeola, Alaba, Samuel, Sunday, Anjorin, Abiola, Opeyemi, Victor, Atanda, Okikiola, Adeleke and Akintola to one year imprisonment each or to pay a fine of N100, 000.00 (One Hundred Thousand Naira), N50, 000.00 (Fifty Thousand Naira), N150, 000.00 (One Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira), N50, 000.00 (Fifty Thousand Naira), N250, 000.00 (Two Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira), N50, 000.00 (Fifty Thousand Naira), N200, 000.00 (Two Hundred Thousand Naira), N200, 000.00 (Two Hundred Thousand Naira), N200, 000.00 (Two Hundred Thousand Naira), N200, 000.00 (Two Hundred Thousand Naira), N200, 000.00 (Two Hundred Thousand Naira), N120, 000.00 (One Hundred and Twenty Thousand Naira), N100, 000.00 (One Hundred Thousand Naira), N50, 000.00 (Fifty Thousand Naira), N500, 000.00 (Five Hundred Thousand Naira), N50, 000.00 (Fifty Thousand Naira), N50, 000.00 (Fifty Thousand Naira), N50, 000.00 (Fifty Thousand Naira) and N50, 000.00 (Fifty Thousand Naira), respectively.

Also convicted and sentenced by Justice Akintola are, Oluwafemi and Prosper who both got six six-month jail term or to pay a fine of N100,000.00 (One Hundred Thousand Naira) each. Others are Wellington and Adedayo who both got six months of community service or to pay a fine of N100,000.00 (One Hundred Thousand Naira) each; Ismaheel Ayomide, who bagged six months community service without option of fine and the trio of Oke, Ogundele and Alabi Ayomide, who bagged three months community service or to pay a fine of N50, 000.00 (Fifty Thousand Naira) each.

Justice Taiwo convicted and sentenced Adisa to five months imprisonment or to pay a fine of N150,000.00 (One Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira), Okoh got four months of jail term while Emmanuel bagged five months of community service without an option of fine.

Justice Adeyemi on his part slammed Ayobami with one year community service and three months of community service each for Adekunle and Adebayo, all without option of fine.

Besides their sentences, all the convicts forfeited items recovered from them to the federal government. Ademola, Oyebamiji, Adeola and Alaba forfeiture four Lexus cars; Victor and Samuel forfeited two Toyota Camry cars, Ayobami forfeited a Mercedes Benz car while Sunday forfeited an Acura car, being proceeds of their crime.