For allegedly defrauding a firm the sum of N822, 422,260, a businessman, Minnis Uchenna Howard was, yesterday, arraigned before a Special Offences Court, sitting in Ikeja.
Howard was arraigned along with his company, Howard Minnis Asset Management Limited by the Economic and Financial Crimes (EFCC) before Justice Rahman Oshodi over alleged fraud.
He was arraigned on a two-count charge bordering on obtaining by false pretense and dishonest conversion. The prosecution counsel, Mohammed Bashir told the court that the defendant and his company committed the offences sometime in 2023, fraudulently obtained the said money, which is an aggregate of N1, 030,972,266, from Krystal Lube Limited.
Bashir said that the defendant falsely obtained the money for the purchase of 900,000 litres of SN 900 Base Oil and 500,000 litres of SN 500 Base Oil at the rate of N970 per litre, a representation he knew to be false.
The defendant and his company was alleged to have dishonestly converted the sum of N822,422,260 to his own use, property of Krystal Lubes Limited paid to him for the purchase of 900,000 litres of SN 900 Base Oil and 500,000 litres of SN 500 Base Oil at the rate of N970 per litre.
EFCC said his offences contravened the provision of Sections 1 (3) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act 2006 and also Section 285 (1) of the Criminal Law of Lagos state 2011.
The defendant who represented his company, pleaded not guilty to the charge read to him. Following his plea of not guilty, the anti-graft counsel asked the court for a trial date and prayed the court to remand the defendant at the Correctional Facility.
In response to his submission, the defendant’s counsel, Kester Elebesunu informed the court that he has filed his bail application. He noted that fresh facts were raised by the complainant and they would need time to respond to it.
Elebesunu prayed the court for a short adjournment so that his bail application could be heard and also urged Justice Oshodi to remand the defendant in EFCC’s custody. He said that he had personally taken the defendant to EFCC’s office last week and he came from EFCC’s office to court.
After listening to their submission, Justice Oshodi therefore ordered the defendant to be remanded at the EFCC’s custody pending the hearing of his bail application and subsequently adjourned the case to November 30, 2023 for bail application and commencement of trial.