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| Joseph Ekemezie |
Justice Mojisola Dada of the Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos, on Wednesday, April 3, 2019, convicted and sentenced an Internet fraudster, Joseph Ekemezie, to one year in prison. .
Trouble started for him when the EFCC acted on a petition received from the Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI, detailing his fraudulent online activities.
He was first arraigned on September 4, 2018 on a six-count charge bordering on possession of a document containing false pretence, an offence contrary to Section 318 of the Criminal Law of Lagos 2011.
He pleaded “not guilty” to the charges preferred against him, thereby setting the stage for his trial.
Ekemezie, however, spent time in prison custody because of his inability to meet conditions of bail granted him by the court.
At today’s proceeding, he was re-arraigned on an amended six-count charge, after entering into a plea bargain with the prosecution.
One of the counts reads: “That you, Joseph Ekemezie, sometime in the month of June 2018 at Ikeja, within the jurisdiction of the Honourable Court with intent to defraud, had in your possession document containing false pretences to wit: ‘California Driver License’ which document you knew to be false.”
In view of the plea bargain application dated February 11, 2019, the court gave its verdict on the case.
The Judge held that prosecuting counsel, Temitope Banjo, proved the case beyond reasonable doubt.
Justice Dada, therefore, convicted and sentenced him to one year imprisonment to take effect from September 4, 2018, the day he was remanded in prison.
