The Kaduna Zonal Office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Thursday November 5, 2020 arraigned one Alhaji Umar Hassan Isa before Justice Mohammed Tukur of the Kaduna State High Court sitting in Kaduna on a six count charge bordering on cheating and issuance of dud cheque
The defendant is alleged to have, sometime in September 2017, fraudulently obtained
At the point of taking possession of the property, the petitioner discovered that the defendant was not the owner of the house. Attempts to recover the money he paid proved futile. The defendant issued him two post-dated United Bank for Africa, UBA and Fidelity Bank Plc cheques which were returned unpaid due to insufficient funds in both accounts.
Count one reads: “that you Alhaji Umar Hassan Isa sometime in 2017 in Kaduna within the judicial Division of this Honourable Court with intent to defraud obtained by false pretence the sum of N6 million from Alhaji Ahmed Ibrahim Kantin Sauki as consideration for the purchase of a property situate and lying at Plot No.20 Rock Close, YMC, Tudun Wada, Kaduna, a pretence you knew to be false and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1) (a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act”.
The defendant pleaded not guilty to the charges when they were read to him, prompting P.C Onyeneho, counsel to EFCC, to ask the court to fix a date for commencement of trial and remand the defendant in a Nigerian Correctional Service’s facility.
Counsel to the defendant, Sule Shuaibu however urged the court to grant his client bail to enable him prepare for his trial.
Justice Tukur granted bail to the defendant in the sum of N2 million and one surety in like sum who must have a landed property with Certificate of Occupancy, C of O, to be verified by the court and EFCC.
The case was adjourned till December 15, 2020 for hearing.
