New Telegraph

Police dock 2 men for N800m property fraud

The trial of two men, Mshelia Julius Silas and Sabo Muhammed Jimeta, who were docked over alleged N800 million property fraud will commence on June 21, 2023, before Justice Nicholas Oweibo of a Federal High Court in Lagos. The defendants were arraigned alongside, a limited liability company, Jitau Investment Limited. In arraigning the defendants, police prosecutor, Emmanuel Jackson, informed the judge that the defendants, with an intent to defraud, conspired among themselves and fraudulently sold off a property located at 3, Bunu Sheriff Crescent, Katempe Extension, Abuja, for the sum of N800 million.

The prosecutor told the court that the said property belongs to one, Abubakar Baba Zango, adding that upon selling off the property, the defendants diverted the proceeds into two bank accounts belonging to Jitau Investment Limited and another bank account belonging to J and J Holding Villa Ltd, different from the one nominated by the owner of the property, Zango. Jackson also informed the court that the offence contravened Sections 1(3) and 1(i)(a) and of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act No. 14 of 2006, as well as Section 15(2)(b) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011, as amended in 2012.

But the defendants pleaded not guilty to the offence when the charge was read to them. Following their plea, lawyers for the defendants, Joe Kyari Gadzama (SAN), Kole Bello and J. W. Dong, told the court that their clients’ bail applications had been filed and served on the prosecution. In moving the bail application, Gadzama told the court that his client, Mshelia Julius Silas, was earlier admitted to administrative bail by the police. The SAN informed the judge that the case that brought his client to court was purely a civil contract between parties. He therefore urged the court to admit his client to bail in the most liberal terms, and that the court should grant him bail on self-recognisance. Mr Kole, lawyer for the second defendant, also aligned himself with the SAN’s submissions.

In opposing the bail applications, the prosecutor, Mr Jackson, told the court that it was true that the defendants were given administrative bail, but it took the police extra effort before they were rearrested and brought to court for arraignment. Jackson urged the court to discountenance the arguments of the SAN that the matter was purely a civil one, rather the nitty-gritty of the matter was a criminal one which informed charging the defendants to court. The prosecutor told the court that the defendants will not turn up for their trial if admitted to bail. He consequently asked the court not to grant the bail applications.

In his ruling on the bail motion, Justice Oweibo acceded to the defendants lawyers’ request and admitted each of them to bail in the sum of N500 million each with one surety in like sum. The judge ordered that the surety must be a property owner within Lagos and that the property must be worth the bail sum, adding that the surety must provide evidence of tax payment for three years. Justice Oweibo while adjourning the matter to June 21 for trial, ordered that the defendants be remanded in police custody pending perfection of the bail terms.

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