The
suspects, who were living at 4, Coal City University Close,
Independence Layout, Enugu, were arrested by operatives of the EFCC
following intelligence report over their alleged involvement in Internet
crime.
One of the suspects, Solomon, who is currently undergoing
the mandatory National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, in Akoko, Ondo State,
confessed that he had about seven different email accounts registered
with different names.
Solomon, who is facing a seven-count charge, further disclosed that most of his victims were from the U.S., Canada and Germany.
According
to him, “One Patricia from Canada gave me $1200USD; Larisa from Germany
gave him $300USD; Ethel from the U.S. also gave me $300USD. All of them
know me as Lincoln, but they don’t know that I live in Nigeria.”
One
of the charges read: “That you Solomon Uchendu on or about 3rd day of
May 2014 in Enugu, Enugu State within the jurisdiction of the Federal
High Court of Nigeria was found in possession of a document containing a
false pretence titled “Hello. I am Mark; sorry for stumbling into your
profile” and thereby committed an offence, contrary to section 6 and
section 8 sub-section( b ) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related
Offence Act 2006 and punishable under section 1 (3) of the same Act.”
The
second suspect, Agu, who hails from Umuelem in Ihitte Uboma LGA of Imo
State, also told the court that he had numerous email accounts.
Agu,
a final year student of the Enugu State University of Science and
Technology, Enugu further told the court that he realized $13000USD
between 2013 and February, 2014 from some of his victims across the
world.
The third suspect, 22-year-old Chikwadu, confessed that he
had three fake drivers’ licences, which were procured in the names of
John Omoaroijake, Gary Harry and Chikwadu Uchendu at a cyber cafe on
Airport Road and at the licensing office at Jakpa Road in Warri, Delta
State.
Chikwadu, who is currently seeking admission into the
Delta State University, said he met one 32 year-old nurse, Grace Talves
of Blackpool, United Kingdom on a dating site named “Tagged”.
The
suspect, who claimed to be Harry Phillp, 42, thereafter, began to send
love scam mails and pictures to Talves, a British divorcee and mother of
one, who is currently in Nigeria for an engineering job.
He stated that he duped her £500, an Ipad and a Mac Air laptop.
One
of the charges read: “That you Uchendu Chinonso on or about 3rd day of
May 2014 in Enugu, Enugu State within the jurisdiction of the Federal
High Court of Nigeria was found in possession of a document containing a
picture in which you presented yourself as a white man by name Gary
Harry Philip a pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an
offence contrary to section 6 and section 8 (b) of the Advance Fee Fraud
and Other Related Offences Act 2006 and punishable under section 1 (3)
of the same Act.”
The prosecuting counsel, Barrister Innocent,
applied orally for a trial date and pleaded that the suspects be
remanded in prison custody.
But the defence counsel, Barrister Aneke, prayed the court to grant the suspects bail.
Justice Agishir adjourned the case to February 10, 2015, and ordered that the suspects be remanded in prison custody.
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