The Federal High Court in Lagos will arraign Gbolahan Obanikoro, the son of Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, and four others for alleged N1.36 billion fraud on February 27, 2025.
Also to be arraigned are Adejare Adegbenro, 51, and Balmoral International Limited, M.O.B. Integrated Limited, and DDSS International Company Limited.
The defendants face five charges, including conspiracy, obtaining by false pretenses, fraud, and false representation.
The charges stem from allegations that the accused conspired to fraudulently obtain the sum of N1,356,057,330.43 from Access Bank Plc (formerly Diamond Bank) between May and September 2013.
When the case was called on Friday, the defendants were absent, prompting the prosecution to request a bench warrant for their arrest.
However, the lawyer for M.O.B. Integrated Limited objected, explaining that the company received late service of the court documents and that many of the company’s directors were out of the country.
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The lawyer requested more time to review the case.
Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa asked the prosecution to provide proof of service for the first and second defendants, as there was only confirmation that the third and fourth defendants had been served.
The judge ruled that the first and second defendants must be properly served and adjourned the case until February 27, 2025, for the arraignment.
The police, through the Special Fraud Unit in Lagos, accuse the defendants of misrepresenting themselves to Access Bank officers, claiming they were importing cars from Dubai for resale in Nigeria, and sought funds to finance the importation.
The accused are also charged with unlawfully converting and using the N1 billion for personal purposes.
The charges violate sections of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud-Related Offenses Act and the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022.
Crediblenewsng.com
