A Federal High Court in Calabar has sentenced the Chief Executive Officer of Micheno Multi-Purpose Cooperative Society, Uno Michael Eke, to one year in prison for his involvement in a fraudulent scheme amounting to N2 billion.
The verdict was delivered by Justice Rosemary Dugbo Oghoghorie following Eke’s guilty plea to charges of conspiracy, obtaining property under false pretenses, and money laundering.
The Uyo Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had filed an amended four-count charge against Eke, detailing his role in defrauding unsuspecting investors by promising unrealistic returns on investment.
One of the charges stated that between June and August 2018, Eke, alongside his now-at-large associate Aya Kanu Aya, conspired to obtain funds under false pretenses.
Another charge specified that he deceived an investor, Kubnse Ogar Ebute, into investing N2 million with the promise of an 80% return within 40 days – an assurance that was ultimately fraudulent.
Cooperative CEO pled guilty to offenses
During the court proceedings, Eke admitted to the offenses when the charges were read to him. The prosecution, led by Joshua Abolarin, urged the court to convict him based on his guilty plea and the presented evidence. On the other hand, defense counsel Ime Umanah cited a plea bargain agreement and requested leniency in sentencing.
After reviewing the plea and the evidence, the judge sentenced Eke to one year in prison with an option to pay a N2 million fine. Additionally, the court ordered the forfeiture of several properties acquired with the fraudulent proceeds.
These included 12 two-bedroom flats in Calabar, two plots of land in Odukpani Local Government Area, two plots in Akai Effa, 18 self-contained flats near the University of Calabar, and N10 million recovered during the EFCC investigation.
All recovered funds were directed to be restituted to the victims. The case had drawn significant attention following Eke’s arrest, which revealed the extent of the scheme.
Investigators found that he had opened multiple bank accounts in his name and that of his company, accumulating over N2 billion from unsuspecting investors. These funds were used to acquire prime real estate in Cross River State.
EFCC set to go after “Yahoo boys” in Nigeria
Meanwhile, reported that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) said it is ready to support the effort to combat internet scams.
This came after hundreds of fraudulent Nigerian Instagram and Facebook accounts were removed by Meta. The social media giant removed almost 63,000 fake accounts last summer because they were linked to the growing fraud issue.
