Couples, two others, arraigned for alleged identity theft, N197m fraud
Abdullateef Fowewe
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has arraigned a husband and wife, identified as, Baba Sule Abubakar Sadiq and Hafsat Kabir Lawal, along with two others, Abdullahi Bala and Ladani Akindele, over allegations of fraud amounting to N197,750,000 through false pretence.
A statement by EFCC on Thursday noted that the suspects allegedly impersonated the wife of the Katsina State Governor, Fatima Dikko Radda, to defraud their victims.
The suspect who were arraigned on a six-count charges, has however pleaded not guilty to the charges when the charges were read to them.
The statement partly reads, “The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has arraigned a husband and wife, Baba Sule Abubakar Sadiq and Hafsat Kabir Lawal, alongside two others, Abdullahi Bala and Ladani Akindele, before Justice Amina Bello of the Kaduna State High Court for obtaining money by false pretense, money laundering and stealing to the tune of N197,750,000 (One Hundred and Ninety Seven Million, Seven Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira.
“They were arraigned on six-count charges on Monday, March 10, 2025. Specifically, the defendants allegedly colluded among themselves and defrauded their victims through different guises, including impersonating the wife of the Governor of Katsina State, Fatima Dikko Radda.
“The defendants were initially arrested by officers of the Department of State Services, DSS and subsequently transferred to the EFCC when it was clear that their offences were financial crimes in nature.”
