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The Enugu Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has successfully secured the conviction of three individuals involved in Internet fraud.
As per an official statement by the EFCC, these individuals were initially brought to court on September 29, 2023. Their case was presented before Justice Nnadi O. Dimgba at the Federal High Court in Awka, Anambra State. Each of them faced separate one-count charges related to impersonation and an attempt to defraud by false pretenses.
The convicted individuals are Anyanwu Prince Uzoma, Okume Clinton Chukwuemeka, and Jude Onyekachi.
The sole charge read as follows: “Jude Onyekachi, in the year 2023 in Enugu State, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, knowingly impersonated Wilfred Baston from the United States using an iPhone 11 and a fake Google chat account with the intent to deceive unsuspecting foreign nationals for personal gain. This act constitutes an offense under Section 22(3) (a) & (b) of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc) Act, 2015, and is punishable under Section 22(4) of the same Act.”
All three individuals pleaded guilty to their respective charges.
Following their guilty pleas, Justice Dimgba rendered a verdict, sentencing each of them to one year in prison. However, the Judge also offered them an alternative option to pay a fine of One Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira (N150,000) each. Furthermore, Justice Dimgba ruled that all assets and items recovered from the convicts would be forfeited to the Federal Government.
