Two BDC Operators Remanded Over N71m Fraud

Zakari Zadu and Jubrilla Yakubu, two Bureau De Change operators, have been remanded.

They were on Wednesday remanded at a correctional centre by a Federal High Court in Lagos over an alleged fraud of N71m.

The operators were remanded following their not-guilty plea to a three-count charge of conspiracy, stealing, and fraud preferred against them by cops from the Force Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department, CIID (Annex) Alagbon-Ikoyi, Lagos, in a charge numbered FHC/L/135c/2023.

Police prosecutor, S. O. Ayodele, told the court that the defendants, sometime in August 2022, conspired among themselves and fraudulently obtained the sum of N71m, from one Suleiman Jibbo, with the pretence of converting it to foreign currency.

He told the court that the defendants after collecting the money from the victim, diverted the money and used it for their personal purposes.

According to the prosecutor, the offences committed contravened section 8(a) and 1(1)(c), 383,and its punishable under section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Related Offences Act 2006, Laws of, 390(9) of the Criminal Code Act, Cap C38, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.

However, the defendants pleaded not guilty to the charge and the prosecutor, Ayodele asked for a trial date, and also urged the court to remand them till the determination of the charge.

But the defendants’ lawyers, Bamidele Ibironke and John Ujah, informed the court that they had filed and served their clients’ bail applications to the prosecutor.  They added that the court’s bailiff had yet to bring it to the court.

They asked the court for a short date for the hearing of the bail applications. Justice Abimbola Awogboro after listening to the submissions of the counsels, adjourned the matter till Friday, March 31, for the hearing of the bail, and adjourned till April 18, for trial.

Justice Awogboro also ordered that the defendants be remanded in the Nigerian Correctional Services custody till the hearing and determination of their bail application.