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The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC, on Wednesday May 31, 2017, arraigned one David Emeka Madubuko before Justice Mohammed Liman of the Federal High Court Sitting in Enugu, for allegedly defrauding some innocent Nigerians of various sums of money totaling the sum of N220,000 (Two Hundred and Twenty Thousand Naira), under the guise that he was capable of giving them employment with the Nigeria Immigrations Services NIS. An offence which is punishable under Section 1(3) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.
When the charge was read to the accused person, he pleaded not guilty on all counts of the five count charge preferred against him by the EFCC.
In view of his plea, the prosecuting counsel Mr. Micheal Ani Esq. then prayed the court to remand the accused person in prison and fix a trial date but the defense counsel C. Utazi Esq. told the court that the accused had paid back the said sum.
Reacting to the information, the Judge immediately stopped the defense counsel on the ground that he should proceed with bail application. He said: “Restitution only comes after judgment following a conviction or plea bargain, and whatever the accused had done cannot stop the trial”.
The defense counsel then prayed the court to grant the accused bail on liberal terms, on the grounds that he had been cooperating with the Commission and had not jumped the administrative bail already granted him by the EFCC.
But before adjourning to September 20, 2017, and after listening to the arguments canvassed by both counsels, the presiding Judge, Justice M. Liman granted the accused bail in the sum of N500, 000.00 (Five Hundred Thousand Naira) in like sum and one surety who must be a senior Immigration officer in the level of a superintendent, as well as a private citizen with landed property within the jurisdiction of the court which must be verified and the document deposited with court registrar.
One of the charges for which the accused person was arraigned reads:
That Mr. David Emeka Madubuko, while being an officer of the Nigeria Immigration Services on 13th day of January, 2014, in Enugu within the Jurisdiction of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, with intent to defraud obtained the sum of Sixty Thousand Naira (N60,000.00) from one Ezekiel Evaristus Chibuzo through your account number 0029365838, domiciled in Access Bank PLC, Kenyetta Branch, Enugu, by false pretence when you falsely presented yourself as capable of giving him employment in the Nigeria Immigration Service which pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1)(a) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.
