The Ilorin Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has secured the conviction of six persons charged with cybercrimes and fraud-related offences.
The convicts who were prosecuted on separate charges stood their trial before Justice Evelyn Anyadike of the Federal High Court and Justice Adebayo Yusuf of the Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin.
They are Aransiola Stephen, Owoeye Ezekiel, Idris Kayode, Abdulrahmon Abubakar, Rafiu Adisa and Raheem Monsur.
Their conviction brings to 24 of the 50 suspects comprising of 48 students of the Kwara State University (KWASU) and two residents of Malete arrested during a sting operation by operatives of the Ilorin Zonal Command of the EFCC over offences of internet fraud also known as “yahoo-yahoo” on February 21, 2024.
The defendants, who were arraigned separately, pleaded guilty to their respective charges when they were read to them.
Following the “guilty plea”, Innocent Mbachie, Adebayo Aliyu, Charles Oni and Rasheedat Alao, who represented the EFCC in the cases, reviewed the facts of the cases and tendered the statements and items recovered from the defendants at the point of arrest, which were admitted in evidence.
The justices having considered the facts placed before the courts and the admittance of guilt by the defendants found them guilty and accordingly sentenced them to various jail terms.
The courts also ordered that the phones and laptops used to commit the crimes by the convicts and the money brought by them as restitution be forfeited to the federal government.
