EFCC Ibadan in first case, arraigns woman over alleged N9m fraud

The Ibadan office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, yesterday arraigned its first case, a suit against one Bisi Lilian Olagunju for allegedly obtaining funds under false pretences at the Oyo State High Court, Ring Road, Ibadan.

Olagunju was arraigned on a three-count charge of receiving a total sum of N9 million from one Abiodun Julius, in three tranches.

She was alleged to have impersonated Special Adviser to the Rural and Urban Development Committee of the National Assembly, and under the said guise, collected the first sum of N500, 000.00 from the purported victim, under the pretence that she would help him secure employment for the younger brother.

Count two of the charges against her alleged that she collected another N5 million from the same Abiodun Julius under the pretence of assisting to seek a contract for the supply of computer accessories to the National Assembly.

She was also said to have allegedly demanded for and obtained another sum of N3.5 million from the same Abiodun Julius, in order to help him facilitate the award of the said “contract for the supply of computer accessories to the National Assembly.”

Lilian Olagunju pleaded not guilty to the three-count charges read to her.

Counsel for EFCC, Oluwatoyin Owodunni, prayed the court to deny the accused bail, maintaining that the offence is too grievous for the accused to be allowed freedom.

Owodunni also averred that investigations by the anti-graft agency has revealed that Olagunju has procured a valid United States visa, with a plan to travel out of the country, which may affect on-going investigation by the agency.

Defense counsel, Onouah Nwabueze, on the other hand invoked the usual, “until she is proven guilty,” cliché, to ask for freedom for his client.

He disclosed that his client has been in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, for over a month and also that the EFCC, haven given her a stringent conditions for administrative bail.

Presiding judge, Justice Muktar Abimbola, however, granted the accused bail in the sum of N10 million, with the provisos that she should produce two sureties in like sum, who must be resident within the court’s jurisdiction, also with landed properties, to be verified by the EFCC.