A Lagos State Special Offences court in Ikeja has discharged and acquitted an alleged Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) informant, Ladeji Babatunde accused of defrauding some people under false pretence.
In a judgment delivered by Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo, the court held that the EFCC, “Failed to prove an intent to defraud and false pretence against the defendant.”
The court also held that the failure of the prosecution to call vital witnesses, “Raises presumption under Section 167(d) of the Evidence Act that had they been called, the evidence they would have led would have been unfavourable to the prosecution case.”
The court concluded that, “in the light of the foregoing, it is the view of this court that the prosecution has failed to prove an intent to defraud and false pretence against the Defendant which is a crucial ingredient in the offence of obtaining under false pretence.”
The defendant was arraigned on December 20th, 2021 by the EFCC on a four-count charge bordering on obtaining money by false pretence contrary to section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Offences Act No. 14 of 2006.
The EFCC witness told the court that his findings and that of his team of investigators revealed that “the defendant was actually impersonating the EFCC and was moving around in the community collecting money from suspected internet fraudsters, promising that he will not bring EFCC to arrest them.”
In his defence, the defendant claimed that although he was indeed collecting money from some of the internet fraudsters, some of the money is loans and gifts and that he was close to the internet fraudsters as an undercover for the EFCC, and that his efforts “has led the EFCC to more than 20 successful operations where they have recovered over N500 million.”
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