Onyeje Abutu
Makurdi – A 43- year -old businessman, Benjamin Mough, was on Thursday brought before a Makurdi Chief Magistrates’ Court for allegedly defrauding a man of the sum of N1.3 million.
Mough was charged with criminal conspiracy, obtaining property by false pretence and fraud punishable under sections 8(a) and 1(3) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006.
The prosecutor, Insp. Hyacinth Gbakor, told the court that the case was reported by one Wg.Codr. A.O. Akinbuwa of the Nigerian Air Force, Makurdi, on Oct 29, 2014 via a letter of complaint against Wichtech Roofing Company, Makurdi branch.
The letter, which was addressed to the Commissioner of Police, Benue State and endorsed to the CID, Makurdi for investigation, said that Akinbuwa gave a job of roofing to Wichtech Roofing represented by Edwin Ogenyi and Benjamin Mough in June, 2014.
The complainant stated in the letter that the job was to roof his house located at Bem Tseen Street, Makurdi.
He said that the Wichtech representatives lied to him that the roof was 503sq metres and made him pay the sum of N4. 4 million.
Akinbuwa said that he later discovered that the actual size of the roof was 365sq metres, so he was allegedly defrauded of the sum of N1.3 million by the representatives.
The prosecutor said during police investigation, Ogenyi was arrested and arraigned, while Mough, who was at large then, has now been arrested in connection with the crime.
However, the court did not take the plea of the accused person for want of jurisdiction.
The prosecutor informed the court that the case was still under investigation.
Counsel for the accused person, Mr Terfa Akosu, applied for his bail pursuant to section 341(2) and (3) of the criminal procedure code, saying that the offence was not capital in nature.
Akosu also said that the accused person had vowed to keep to the terms of bail.
The Magistrate, Mr Isaac Ajim, granted bail to the accused in the sum of N200,000 and a fit surety in the same amount.
Ajim adjourned the matter till Feb 12, 2017 for further mention.