Benjamin Asuahor, a 28 year old resident of Eleko Town, Lagos State, was on Thursday arraigned before a Magistrate court in Abuja for alleged cheating. The accused, who appeared before Chief Magistrate Rahmatu Gulma, was charged with criminal breach of trust and criminal intimidation.
The Police Prosecutor, Cpl. John Ijagbemi, told the court that one Amaka Okoye of number 2, Gafia Street, Nasarawa State, reported the accused at the FCT police command headquarters, Abuja. Ijagbemi said that on June 4, the accused, who was a facebook contact, proposed to sell ladies wear and hand bags to Okoye at the rate of N140,000.
He said on June 20, Okoye paid the said money into a UBA account, in favour of one Obiowu Felix, but the accused refused to supply the items.
The Prosecutor told the court that efforts to get the money back proved abortive, adding that in the process, the accused threatened to kill Okoye if she insisted on collecting her money back. He said police investigation had discovered that the accused was only a con artiste that neither had a job nor a shop. Ijagbemi said the accused was charged with criminal breach of trust, cheating and criminal intimidation, which is contrary to the provisions of sections 312, 322 and 397 of the Penal Code.
When the accused was asked if the allegations leveled against him were true, he pleaded not guilty. The Prosecutor, however, urged the court for an adjournment and urged the court to remand the accused in prison custody till the next adjourned date.
He argued that the accused had no fixed address within the jurisdiction of the court and if granted bail on any grounds, he was liable to jump bail. Chief Magistrate Gulma, remanded the accused in prison custody and adjourned the case to Nov. 21, for further hearing.