Student arraigned for allegedly defrauding company of N900,000

Busayo Ayedun, a 24-year-old student at the Lagos State Polytechnic in Ikorodu, is on trial before a Yaba Magistrate Court for allegedly defrauding a company, CD Care Limited of products and money totalling more than N900,000 in the state.

The defendant is charged with eight counts that include crime, fraud, deceit, pretence, stealing, forgery, and false representation as well as purposeful and unlawful conspiracy.

Inspector Godwin Oriabure, the police prosecutor, informed the court that the offence was perpetrated by the defendant between July 10, 2021, and October 31, 2021, near Adenike Street in the Fadeyi neighbourhood of the state.

The charges read in part, “That you, Busayo Ayedun, and others at large, between July 10, 2021, and October 31, 2022, between 8 am to 6 pm at Adenike Street, Fadeyi, Lagos State, in the Lagos Magisterial District, did deliberately and unlawfully conspired among yourselves to deceive and defraud CD Care Limited of goods valued at N911,709, 84.”

Oluwatobi Odukoya, a sales agent for the company who testified for the prosecution, described how the crime was perpetrated by saying that Ayedun ordered three items for N638,706,000 online on the days in question: a Samsung Galaxy A12, an iPhone 12 mini, and a Binatone standing fan.

According to Odukoya, Ayedun also asked for reimbursement for a payment she allegedly made to the business and received in the amount of N273,003,81.

He continued by saying that it was found that Ayedun had placed all of the orders under three distinct names: Wahab Adeyemo, Ayedun Ibiyemi, and Shoberu Michael.

After the company found out that it had been defrauded and that all the payments Ayedun claimed to have made with bank statements and payment receipts were false, Odukoya said she was contacted via phone calls and Whatsapp messages to come within the space of three months to clarify the misconception.

Odukoya said Ayedun did not show up, adding that the company reported to the police who arrested her and retrieved one of the phones.

In her defence, Ayedun said she paid some of the money using her roommate’s point-of-sale machine, adding that all the details were in the phone retrieved by the police.

The Chief Magistrate, O. A. Salawu, instructed the defendant to take payment records with dates from her roommate’s PoS machine and show them in court during the subsequent trial.

The case was adjourned until January 26, 2023, for cross-examination and continuation of trial.

Student arraigned for allegedly defrauding company of N900,000