Crime
BREAKING: Evans, accomplice jailed 21 years for kidnapping, collecting $420,000
An Ikeja Special Offences Court on Monday sentenced kidnap kingpin, Chukwudimeme Onwuamadike, alias Evans to 21 years imprisonment for kidnapping a businessman Slyvanus Ahamonou and collecting 420,000 dollars as ransom from his family.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Evans accomplice, Victor Aduba, an ex-soldier was also sentenced to 21 years imprisonment on a four-count charge bordering on kidnapping and unlawful possession of firearms.
Delivering judgment, Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo, held that the prosecution had successfully proved the case of kidnap and possession of firearms against the convicts.
“It has been established by the prosecution witness (PW3, Ahamonou) complainant was kidnapped. The question is kidnapped him?
“Pw3 identified the first defendant in court while he was giving his testimony. He also recognized him at the police station nearly two months before the matter was taken to court.
“He testified that he was blindfolded before being taken to the bus. He said ‘Immediately I saw him, I said this was the person that kidnapped me’ I also watched the video where the first defendant admitted to having kidnapped pw3.
“The first defendant sat in a comfortable chair and there was no sign that he made the statement under duress.
”He was not threatened or harassed. He signed the statement.
“He also said how he broke into banks and later graduated to kidnapping. I am satisfied that this court can convict the defendants through his confessional statement,” Taiwo said.
The judge also held that there was no proof before the court that three of the Evans men were killed by the police.
She also convicted Aduba, based on his confessional statement, and held that he should serve out his term without the option of fine.
“I have considered the allocates of the defence counsel. This sentencing will serve as a deterrent to others.
“The two are hereby to five-year jail term for the first count, second count, 21 years, and third count, five years.
“The sentencing will, however, run concurrently. They are hereby sentenced to 21 years imprisonment without an option of fine.,” Taiwo said.
The first defence counsel, Mr Amobi Nzelu, in his allocutus, prayed the court to temper justice with mercy, adding that the convict was already serving a life jail term.
“I pray the court to grant him a lesser jail term,” Amobi said.
The second defence counsel, Mrs Adeola Folarin, I’m her allocutus, also prayed the court to temper justice with mercy as the convict was a first offender.
“My lord, he is a young man that has served his country while in the army.
“He also had a child while he was in custody. He is a father of two young children and they have not enjoyed his fatherly love. We pray the court to temper justice with mercy,” Folarin said
The state counsel, Mr Yusuf Sule, however, urged the court to convict the defendants as charged.
“My lord, the first defendant had been sentenced to life imprisonment before Justice Hakeem Oshodi. I urge the court to sentence the defendants accordingly,” Sule said.
NAN reports that Ahamonou and his wife, Chimebere had on Dec. 17, 2021 testified virtually about how Evans and his gang kidnapped him on June 23, 2014, on Kara Road off Osolo Way, Ajao Estate, Lagos.
The couple narrated how they sold properties, borrowed money, raised funds from family and well-wishers to attempt to raise the initial 2 million dollars ransom that was demanded by Evans.
Sylvanus whose hands and legs were chained throughout his two months in captivity was only released when the family had allegedly given Evans 420,000 dollars ransom and he was at the point of death.
NAN also reports that Justice Hakeem Oshodi of the Ikeja High Court had on Feb. 25 sentenced Evans to life imprisonment for the kidnap of Mr Donatius Dunu, the Chief Executive Officer of Maydon Pharmaceuticals Ltd.
The police in Lagos have dragged two women, Mmesuma Ofunna, and Blessing Adimekwe, before an Ojo Magistrates’ Court in Lagos, over alleged obtaining money by false pretence.
Ofunna, 22, and Adimekwe, 25, were arraigned before the Magistrate, Mr L K J Layeni, on a four-count charge bordering on conspiracy, obtaining by false pretence, stealing and conduct likely to breach peace.
They each, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The prosecutor, ASP Simon Uche, told the court that the defendants conspired with others now at large, to commit the offence on Oct. 26 at the Okokomaiko area of Ojo.
He alleged that they had obtained the sum of N70, 000 from one Faith Ahamefule, with a promise not to post her nude photo on social media.
The prosecutor alleged that the defendants later posted the nude photo of the nominal complainant on social media, knowing that their promise was false.
He alleged that they stole the N70, 0000, thereby conducting themselves in a manner likely to breach public peace.
The offence contravenes the provisions of sections 168(d), 287, 314, and 411 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.
The court granted the defendants bails in the sum of N500, 000 each, with two sureties each in like sum.
He adjourned the case until Jan. 8, 2025 for mention.
A Jos Magistrates’ Court on Monday, sentenced a 26-year-old Mechanic, Sadiq Umar to 15 months imprisonment for pickpocketing from passengers.
The Magistrate, Shawomi Bokkos, summarily tried and sentenced the convict after he pleaded guilty to the charge.
Bokkos in his judgment, ordered the convict to pay an option of N100, 000 fine or spend one year in prison.
He also asked him to pay a compensation of N15, 000 or an additional three months in prison in default.
Earlier, the Prosecutor, Insp Ijuptil Thiawur, told the court that the case was reported on Nov.16, at the “A” Division Police station by Moses Pam, Alexander Bakshak and Simon Justice the complaints.
Thiawur said that the convict attempted to steal from them before he was caught in the act and when the driver stopped the vehicle to search him he fled but was caught.
The Police said that the offence contravened the Plateau Penal Code Law.
The Zone-2 Police Command in Lagos says it has detained two suspected international fraudsters that allegedly specialised in forging foreign certificates in Lagos and Ghana.
The AIG in charge of the zone, Adegoke Fayaode, confirmed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday.
Fayoade said that the suspects allegedly offered N66m to the operatives with a view to free them but the offer was turned down.
NAN reports that the same zone operatives rejected a N174m bribe offered by a suspect in November to set him free.
Fayoade said that the suspects simply identified as Elvis, 23 and Kelly, 24, allegedly specialised in forging certificates of different nations and African Universities and defrauding their unsuspecting victims on the internet.
He said that the suspects have succeeded in acquiring exotic cars and erecting mansions in different parts of the country with the proceeds of their loot.
The AIG pointed out that luck ran out of the suspects after detectives at the Anti-Corruption Unit of the Zone received credible information from Nigerians in diaspora concerning some group of boys that specialised in forging foreign certificates.
According to him, on getting the information, he detailed the anti-corruption unit to investigate it and arrest the suspects without delay.
Fayoade said that based on his directives, the detectives stormed Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos waiting for the arrival of the suspects, whom they trailed to a five star hotel at Osapa-London in Lekki Area.
He said that the operatives arrested the suspects at a bus stop while they were about to escape secretly from the hotel, after monitoring their activities.
“Searching their luggage, one certificate of Blue Crest College, Ghana, belonging to Elvis and a student identity card of Academic City College belonging to Kelly were recovered.
“Further search revealed a transcript of an academic record from Blue Crest University belonging to Elvis.
“A letter of English proficiency from the said college and a letter of recommendation from the same Blue Crest College were recovered,” he said.
The AIG said that the suspects made useful statements to the police and confessed that they never got any admission into the school, stressing that they only procured the degree certificates through the help of a female Nigerian resident in Ghana.
“The suspects further confessed that the major aim of doing that is to enable them to get Ghana resident permit, which they got.
“The resident permit is showing them also as a student of Academic City University and that none of them has ever been admitted in the school.
“They claimed they paid a total of 26,000 Ghana Cedis for all the documents procured.
“They confessed that they procured all the documents to evade arrest in Ghana since they don’t have any means of livelihood.
Whenever police intercepted them, they showed their passports that they were students in Ghana.”
Fayoade said that the suspects were also allegedly involved in online romance scam, provision of foreign bank accounts for fraudulent transactions on the internet through what they call ‘Facebook bombing’.
He said the suspects presented themselves as an American soldier by name Captain Donald Rowe, serving in Syria, whom they impersonated on Instagram, using his name to defraud innocent persons.
The AIG said that while detectives were making frantic efforts to get more credible information from the suspects, they started negotiating to bribe the operatives for them to be set free.
“I directed my men to play along and recover the money as an exhibit. Subsequently, the detectives played along and the suspects paid them a sum of N66m, which they collected and kept as an exhibit.
“The Nigeria Police authorities have written to the Ghana embassy to get more information about the result and their suspected partners in Ghana said to be spearheading the fraud.
Fayoade said that they had also spread their dragnets through the International Police, Interpol, to round up their foreign accomplices.
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