Justice Mahmood Abdulgafar of the Kwara State High Court, Ilorin, has sentenced a Lagos based 20-
year-old boy, Oke Gideon, to 30days imprisonment having found him guilty of offences bordering
romance scam and internet fraud.
Gideon was arrested on May 4, this year by operatives of the Ilorin Zonal Office of the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, following intelligence reports on his activities.
Upon arrest, he was profiled and volunteered statements, admitting to committing the crime. In his
confessional statement dated May 6, 2021, Gideon admitted that he engaged in dating scam, love scam,
and other internet fraud related offences.
The boy was consequently arraigned in Court on Friday, July 2, 2021 on two counts, to which he pleaded
guilty. Following his plea, counsel to EFCC, Sesan Ola, led an operative of the Commission, Sarah Audu, to
review facts of the case.
Audu narrated how Gideon was arrested based on actionable intelligence on the activities of internet
fraudsters operating within Ilorin metropolis.
She tendered the confessional statements of the convict as well as fraudulent messages printed from his
email, which were all admitted in evidence.
In his judgment on the matter, Justice Abdulgafar convicted and sentenced Gideon based on his
confessional statement, his plea to the charge and the exhibits tendered against him before the court.
However, the Judge gave the convict an option of fine of Fifty Thousand Naira and ordered that his
iPhone 6 and HP laptop which were used as instruments in the crime be forfeited to the Federal
Government.
