N130m land fraud: Court adjourns indefinitely arraignment of Ojikutu, son

A Federal High Court in Lagos on Friday adjourned indefinitely the arraignment of a former Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Alhaja Sinatu Ojikutu, and her son, Samson, over their alleged complicity in a N130 million fraud.
Ojikutu and Samson were to be arraigned on three counts of conspiracy, fraud and stealing.
Justice Mohammed Yunusa adjourned the arraignment sine die, after the counsel of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Bukola Durojaiye,informed the court that the suspects were absent in court due to the inability of the police to secure their arrest.
Durojaiye had then prayed the court to adjourn the arraignment indefinitely.
Yunusa, consequently adjourned the case indefinitely.
“The application of prosecution is hereby granted and the case is hereby adjourned sine die, to enable the prosecution make necessary arrangement for the arraignment of the suspects,” Yunusa ruled.
The duo was to be arraigned but this failed due to their absence.
Earlier, Durojaiye told the court that the Special Fraud Unit was making frantic efforts to ensure that the suspects were produced to stand trial.
Durojaiye, therefore, prayed the court to adjourn the case sine die to enable the prosecution put its house in order and produce the accused for arraignment.
In the charge sheet, the suspects were alleged to have committed the offence in September 2011.
They were alleged to have fraudulently obtained the sum of N130 million from one Cajetan Okekearu under the pretence that they possessed a plot of land to sell at Lekki Phase 1, Victoria Island, Lagos.
It was further alleged that the suspects obtained the said sum of money from the complainant, who later discovered that their claim of ownership of the land was false, as there was an already existing title to the land.
The offences are said to contravene the provisions of sections 1(a) (iii), and 8 (a) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, Cap. A6, Laws of the Federation, 2004.
The offence also contravenes the provisions of Section 390(9) of the Criminal Code Act, Cap. C38, Vol. 10, Laws of the Federation, 2010.
Section 1(1) (a) of the Advanced fee fraud Act provides for a term of not more than 20 years imprisonment and not less than seven years imprisonment for fraud.
In the same vain, Section 390(9) of the Criminal Code Act provides that where a thing stolen is of the value of N1,000 and upwards, the offender is liable to imprisonment for seven years.