By Damilare Adeleye
Justice C. A. Obiozor of the Federal High Court sitting in Benin City has convicted and sentenced one Olabinjor Ajobor, a businessman, to seven years imprisonment without an option of fine.
According to anti-graft agency, the defendant was first arraigned in 2018 before being re-arraigned in July 2023 on an amended three count charge of obtaining by false pretence.
One of the charges reads: “That you OLABINJOR AJOBOR and BISOFRANK INVESTMENT LIMITED on or about the 21st day of February, 2017 in Benin, Edo State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable did with intent to defraud induced one Mr. George Ezomo to deposit the sum of N6,270,000.00 (Six Million, Two Hundred and Seventy Naira) through Mr. Michael Ezomoghene into Account No: 1771641039 domiciled in Skye Bank Plc operated by you with the pretence that the said money was an investment in 66,000 litres supply of Low Pour Fuel Oil (L.P.F.O) from Petroleum Pricing Marketing Company (PPMC) with a share of 60% of the profit to him, which pretence you knew is false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1) (c) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006 and Punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.”
During trial, the prosecution called three witnesses who testified as to how the defendant committed the offence and tendered several documents.
Delivery judgment on the matter, Justice Obiozor held that the Prosecution counsel, I. M. Elodi proved her case beyond reasonable doubt, convicted and sentenced the defendant to seven years imprisonment without an option of fine. However, the defendant is to be released from prison if he restitutes the victim the sum of N12.5 million and pays a fine of N500,000 to the Federal government of Nigeria. The judge ordered that the second defendant, Bisofrank Investment Limited being a company, be wound up.
The convict’s road to prison began when he obtained the aggregate sum of N12.5 million from one George Ezomo under the pretence that the money was for investment in petroleum products, an investment which turned out to be false.