Court jails man for $115,000 internet fraud

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court sitting in the Jabi area of Abuja, on Wednesday, December 11, 2024, convicted and sentenced one Praise Humphrey Igbo to one year imprisonment for internet fraud.

Igbo was prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes (EFCC) on a one-count charge bordering on internet crime, criminal impersonation, obtaining money under false pretence, and money laundering to the tune of $115,000.

His charge read: “That you, Praise Humphrey Igbo sometime in 2022 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honorable court, with intent to defraud, did cheat by pretending to be one Jesisca Allen, a successful crypto currency trader in the United State of America and in that assumed character, fraudulently obtained 5.26 Bitcoins worth $115,000 by false pretence, property of Aaron Baker, thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 321 of the Penal Code Act Abuja, Cap 532 LFN 2004 and punishable under Section 324 of the same Act.”

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He pleaded “guilty” to the charge when it was read to him upon which prosecution counsel, M.K Hussain, prayed the court to convict and sentence him accordingly.

The presiding judge, Justice H.L Abba-Aliyu, convicted and sentenced Igbo to one year imprisonment or to pay a fine of N1 million.

Justice Abba-Aliyu further ruled that the sum of $16,110 and $67,487.79 worth of cryptocurrency recovered from him and the money in his bank account be used to restitute his victim through the American Embassy.

Igbo’s journey to the correctional centre started when a petitioner, East Baton Rouge Parish (Aaron Bakker), an American, alleged that the convict pretending to be one Jessica Allen, a purported crypto investor, stole $115,000 worth of Bitcoin from him on Blockchain.com after presenting an investment opportunity to him, which turned out to the fake.

The Star