A lawyer, Mr Ola Dan Ola, has petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), accusing the Managing Director of Meadville Building Construction Company Limited, Otunba Ademola Akin Benson, of allegedly defrauding his client.
The Akure-based legal practitioner urged the anti-graft commission to arrest and investigate the housing developer, Akin-Benson, for allegedly collecting a sum of N2million from his client, Dr S. Odedina.
The lawyer alleged that the developer deceived his client that he wanted to sell allocation for model housing units located at Alagbaka Area of Akure, the Ondo State capital, to his client.
The petition, titled titled, ‘Petition against obtaining money under false pretence, fraudulent conversion, economic sabotage and financial misappropriation’ and dated August 31, 2022, was made available to our correspondent in Akure.
According to the petition, the lawyer alleged that his client had deposited some building materials worth N10milion which had been allegedly taken over by the suspect.
The lawyer also alleged that Akin-Benson introduced the project to his client in a letter he (Akin-Benson) personally signed under the pretext of being the MD of a construction company, having a collaboration with the federal government
The petition reads in part, “The suspect further claimed in the letter that he had a collaboration with Federal Ministry of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria and Federal Housing Authority Homes Ltd. Under this pretence, the prime suspect in the person of Otunba Ademola Akin-Benson fraudulently obtained from our client the sum of an N2million.
“According to our client, Otunba Ademola Akin Benson claimed to have for sale and allocation model housing units located opposite Police Headquarters (S.I.B) Alagbaka, Akure.
Benson’s claim of affiliation with federal government agencies and ministries persuaded our client to part with an initial sum of N10,000 application fee. This initial deposit was made by our client vide e-transfer to the account details as supplied by Akinbenson:
“It is our brief that on October 7, 2015, our client was also defrauded by Otunba Akinbenson to the tune of an N2million. This sum represents the purchase of a housing unit at Alagbaka as promoted and guaranteed by Otunba Akinbenson. Our client used his First Bank account to transfer the said sum of N2,000,000 into the suspect’s Zenith Bank.
“The grand criminal plot and fraudulent intention of Otunba Akinbenson became exposed when the suspect, with the use of hoodlums and bulldozer, destroyed all building materials deposited at the allocated site by our client. Materials worth millions of naira were either destroyed or criminally converted by the suspect.”
When contacted on the telephone, the Managing Director of the Medavile Building Construction Company Limited denied the allegations, saying he did not involve in any fraudulent practice in the housing business.
He said, “I didn’t defraud anybody, if anybody has an issue with me such a person should come to our office and meet me so that we can discuss and sort things out. N2million is nothing to me, if the person is sure of himself that I owed him an N2million, let him come over to our office with genuine evidence of payment and we will pay him back.
“He should go and report at the police station or appropriate quarters and they would investigate it.
“Let the person that made the allegation come down to our office with evidence and we will resolve the matter,” Akin-Benso said.
