The Enugu Division of the Courtroom of Appeal has upheld the seven-year imprisonment of a convicted former worker of Guaranty Trust Bank, Onyekachi Nwosu, for his involvement in a mortgage fraud amounting to over N50 million.
Justice Zainab Abubakar of the Courtroom of Appeal delivered the decision, in response to an announcement by the Financial and Monetary Crimes Fee (EFCC) on Thursday.
Nwosu was prosecuted by the EFCC on a nine-count cost, referring to forgery and acquiring cash by false pretence to the tune of N50 million.
EFCC Investigation and Trial Courtroom Judgment
In response to the EFCC, the suspect, who was an account officer for one Anyaso Chinedu, proprietor of Floxy Aluminum Odiofele Merchandise Restricted, used a cast doc titled “An Software to Mortgage, Consent to Mortgage and Tripartite Authorized Mortgage” to deceive GTB into believing that Mrs. Adebimpe Foluke had pledged her property as collateral for the mortgage granted to Floxy Aluminum Odiofele Merchandise Restricted.
Investigations additional revealed that he benefited N40 million from the fraudulent act by instantly withdrawing it from the account of Floxy Aluminum Odiofele Merchandise Restricted.
Depend 9 of the cost reads:
“That you simply, Onyekachi Nwosu, someday in September 2010 in Enugu throughout the jurisdiction of the Federal Excessive Courtroom of Nigeria, whereas being an officer of Guaranty Trust Bank and linked with the grant of a mortgage, knowingly processed and facilitated the grant of a mortgage of Fifty Million Naira (N50,000,000.00) to Floxy Aluminum Odiofele Merchandise Restricted, acquired the sum of Forty Million Naira (N40,000,000.00) as private gratification out of the stated mortgage after it was granted, thereby committing an offence opposite to Part 15(1)(a)(iii) and punishable underneath Part 16(1)(a) of the Failed Banks (Restoration of Money owed) and Monetary Malpractices in Banks Act Cap. F2 Legal guidelines of the Federation of Nigeria.”
In the course of the trial, the EFCC referred to as 4 witnesses and tendered 16 reveals to assist its allegations.
On the finish of the trial, Justice R. O. Dugbo Oghoghorie held that the EFCC had proved its case past cheap doubt and convicted and sentenced Nwosu accordingly in 2021.
Dissatisfied with the judgment, Nwosu appealed to the Courtroom of Appeal, praying it to put aside the trial courtroom’s judgment.
The EFCC, on its half, urged the courtroom to uphold the Excessive Courtroom’s judgment and dismiss the attraction on the grounds that “the prosecution proved its case past cheap doubt.”
Appeal Courtroom Judgment
- In a unanimous judgment by a three-member panel of the Appeal Courtroom, delivered by Justice Zainab Abubakar, the courtroom held that the EFCC’s proof corroborated the appellant’s confession that he collected N40 million from the mortgage sum of N50 million granted to Floxy Aluminum Odiofele Merchandise Restricted.
“The appellant has admitted that he collected N40 million from the mortgage sum, which has proved the final ingredient of the offence towards the appellant,” the Appeal Courtroom said.
- Consequently, the choose held that the “conviction of the appellant on Depend 9 of the cost by the trial courtroom was so as, in my humble view.”
- The Courtroom of Appeal put aside the convictions on counts one to eight however upheld the conviction on Depend 9.
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