Justice Mohammed Garba Umar of the Federal High Court, Enugu, has convicted and sentenced two internet fraudsters, Arinze Chukwudi and Ajah Uchechukwu, to various jail terms for offences bordering on cybercrime and impersonation.
The duo were prosecuted separately by the Enugu Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a one-count charge.
According to court records, Chukwudi, 26, “fraudulently impersonated the identity of one Jimcho Mun, a South Korean military personnel working as a nurse in Damascus, Syria, and residing in the United States,” through a fake Facebook account operated on his Itel A662L device.
“His target was one M. Irfan, a foreign national. The offence occurred in Enugu in 2024 and violated Section 22 (3)(a)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015”.
In Uchechukwu’s case, he conspired with others, including a convicted fraudster in the U.S. and two others at large, to impersonate a U.S. citizen and defraud their victim, Ngan Nguyen, of $10,452. The crime reportedly took place in Amakohia, Imo State, in 2017.
Following their guilty pleas, EFCC counsel, Ajobiewe Rotimi Enitan, urged the court to convict and sentence them.
However, the defence counsel, Chijioke E., pleaded for leniency on behalf of his clients.
Justice Umar thereafter sentenced Chukwudi to 11 months’ imprisonment without an option of fine, while Uchechukwu was given a six-month jail term with an additional fine of N500,000.
According to the EFCC, they were arrested on May 17, 2024, for impersonating foreign nationals to commit fraud.
Meanwhile, in a related case, three other suspects, Odinaka Ogbu, Nwachukwu Prosper, and Desmond Okoye, were arraigned before the same court on cybercrime-related charges.
Ogbu is facing a two-count charge for allegedly aiding others to carry out unauthorised modifications of computer systems and network data.
Prosecutors say the offence, which took place in Enugu in 2024, involved a syndicate led by one Ledata Evans, who is still at large.
Prosper and Chidera are accused of fraudulently using the email password of Rev. Dr Jeremiah Ugochukwu Nwachukwu to gain an undue advantage for themselves. The EFCC said their actions also violated the Cybercrime Act, 2015.
While Prosper pleaded guilty, Ogbu and Chidera entered not guilty pleas. Based on their responses, prosecution counsel Anyanwu Somtochukwu urged the court to convict Prosper and fix a trial date for Chidera and Ogbu.
Justice Umar adjourned the matter till May 21 for a hearing on Chidera’s bail application as well as the review of facts in Prosper’s case.
The judge also fixed June 25 for a hearing on Ogbu’s bail application and remanded all three defendants in the Enugu Correctional Centre.
