EFCC arraigns lawyer over alleged N12m land fraud

Abdullateef Fowewe

Operatives of the Enugu Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, has arraigned a legal practitioner identified as Benjamin Chkwuemka over an alleged N12m land fraud before Justice F.O. Giwa-Ogunbanjo of the federal high court Enugu.

According to a statement on Tuesday, by the anti-graft agency, defendant who was charged on a three count charge pleaded not guilty and further made an oral application for bail which the court granted on two terms.

Count three of the charge reads: “That you, Benjamin Chukwuemeka Nwobodo on 15thday of January, 2014 within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of Nine Million Naira only (N9,000,000.00) from one Wilson Ikeani Igwe under the false pretence of the sale of three plots of land situated at Emene, Enugu State to him, a pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1 of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006 and punishable under Section 1 (3) of the same Act.”

Count four of the charge read, “That you, Benjamin Chukwuemeka Nwobodo on 15thday of December, 2014 within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of Three Million Naira only (N3,000,000.00) from one Wilson Ikeani Igwe under the false pretence of the sale of one plot of land situated at Emene, Enugu State to him, a pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1 of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006 and punishable under Section 1 (3) of the same Act.”

However, the defendant pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to him.

“In view of his plea, counsel to the EFCC, Chief Superintendent of the EFCC, CSE Chikezie Raymond Edozie prayed the court for a trial date and for the defendant to be remanded at the Enugu State Correctional Facility,” the statement partly said.