Court Jails Fraudster Via Virtual Proceedings

By Owolola Adebola

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC on Wednesday, May 20, 2020, secured the conviction of an internet fraudster, Lawal Sholaru, who bagged six months imprisonment or a N400,000 (Four Hundred Thousand Naira) option of fine for defrauding an American, Mr. David Geobel, of $1,200 in an online scam.

Sholaru was convicted by Justice Mojisola Dada of Ikeja Special
Offences Court in a judgment, delivered in a virtual proceeding.
The convict was arraigned on March 18, 2020 by the EFCC on one-count charge of obtaining money by false pretence, to which he pleaded guilty.

Prosecution counsel, S.O. Daji while reviewing the facts of the case, told the court that the defendant in his statement to the EFCC, confessed that he was into romance scam with the pseudo name, Alicia White, a US national on Facebook and additionally posed as William Bale, a Major-General in the US Army, to defraud his unsuspecting victims.

In addition to the prison term, Justice Dada ordered the convict’s forfeiture of his Lexus ES 350 and any other property recovered from him by the EFCC as proceed of crime to the federal government.