UNIPORT Final-Year Student Bags 14 Years Imprisonment For Internet Fraud
- The EFCC has arraigned a final-year UNIPORT student on seven-count charges bordering on obtaining money under false pretence and impersonation
- Justice A. T. Mohammed of the federal high court sitting in Port Harcourt sentenced Henry Nathaniel Ekanem to 14 years imprisonment
- Ekanem defrauded one Diana Roskov of 22 US dollars ($22), among other fraudulent internet activities
TheTalk.NG journalist Adekunle Dada has over 5 years of experience covering metro, government policy, and international events
Port Harcourt, Rivers state – A final-year student of the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) Henry Nathaniel Ekanem, has been sentenced to 14 years imprisonment for internet fraud.
Justice A. T. Mohammed of the federal high court sitting in Port Harcourt, on Wednesday, October 30.
EFCC arrested Ekanem for internet fraud and other fraud-related activities
Photo credit: @officialEFCCSource: Twitter
The Port Harcourt Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arraigned Ekanem on seven-count charges bordering on obtaining money under false pretence and impersonation.
The EFCC disclosed this in a statement issued via its X handle (formerly known as Twitter) @officialEFCC.
Operatives of the anti-graft agency arrested Ekanem sometime in September 2024 at Choba, Port Harcourt, for internet fraud and other fraud-related activities
The UNIPORT student defrauded one Diana Roskov of 22 US dollars ($22), among others, by fraudulently representing himself as Coran Capshaw, manager of the singer, Chris Stapleton through WhatsApp and Instagram chats.
Ekanem was said to have committed the crime around September, 17 which is contrary to Section 1(1) (a) and punishable under Section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud-Related Offences Act 2006.”
He pleaded guilty when the charges were read to him.
The prosecution counsel, A. Abubakar called witnesses who tendered some documents as evidence and prayed the court to convict and sentence the defendant accordingly.
Ekanem’s counsel, F. T. Fred-Boufini, prayed the court to temper justice with mercy stressing that the defendant was a first-time offender with no previous criminal records.
Justice Mohammed sentenced the defendant to two years imprisonment on each of the seven counts or an option of a fine of N200,000 payable into the Consolidated Revenue Account of the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The judge also ordered that all the phones recovered from the convict be forfeited to the government, being proceeds of crime. The convict shall also depose an affidavit of good behaviour fourteen before the court.
Court issues fresh order on wanted ex-Kogi governor
Meanwhile, TheTalk.NG reported that Yahaya Bello, the immediate past governor of Kogi state, was ordered to appear before the Federal High Court in Abuja on November 14.
In a fresh suit, the EFCC accused Bello of criminal breach of trust and unlawful possession of acquired property between 2016 and 2023.
Bello is also facing fresh charges of N110 billion in fraud and the initial 19 charges of money laundering totaling N80.2 billion
Source: TheTalk.NG
