A
48-year-old man, David Olanrewaju Ajofolowo has been arraigned in Magistrates’
Court 8, Iyaganku, Ibadan, Oyo State on a four-count charge of conspiring with
one other person to obtain money from a physically-challenged lady by
pretending to want to assist her to process her travelling to India for a hip
replacement surgery.
In a suit with charge number MI/1632C/2013, the first count read
“that you Olanrewaju David ‘m’ and others now at large on 17th day of November,
2012, at Fidelity Bank, Challenge, Ibadan, in Ibadan magisterial district did
conspire with one another to commit felony to wit: obtaining money by false
pretence, stealing and forgery and thereby committed an offence contrary to and
punishable under section 516 of the criminal code, cap 38, volume 2 laws of Oyo
State of Nigeria 2000.”
Count two also read that the accused and others at large
obtained N1.5million from one Raji Tawakalitu Temitope under the pretence of
taking her to India for hip replacement surgery, thereby committing an offence
contrary to and punishable under section 419 of the criminal code, cap 38,
volume 2 laws of Oyo State Nigeria 2000, while count three read that the
accused and others at large stole N1.5million, property of Raji Tawakalitu
Temitope, which is punishable under section 390 (9) of the criminal code cap
38, volume 2 laws of Oyo State of Nigeria 2000.
In count four, Olanrewaju was also accused of presenting himself
to be the Chief Executive Officer of a non-governmental organisation known as
‘Succour’ with the intent to defraud, and thereby committed an offence contrary
to and punishable under section 484 of the criminal code, cap 38, volume 2 laws
of Oyo State, Nigeria.
Crime Reports learnt that Tawa was given the money by an
anonymous donor after her story was published in Sunday Tribune of June 10,
2012, stating her pathetic situation. She had told of how her hips were
displaced after her legs became deformed as a result of an accident she had at
age seven.
Though the surgery was supposed to be carried out by the
University College Hospital, Ibadan, Tawa said she was told at the UCH that
there were no facilities to handle her case. This prompted the hospital to
refund the N1.5million to her account. The accused, who had presented himself
as wanting to help the lady, reportedly asked her to withdraw the money from
her account so that he could change it into dollars to process the visa to
India and to pay for the flight ticket and treatment.
Having trusted Olanrewaju, who she saw as God-sent, Tawa
withdrew the money on November 17, 2012 and gave it to the accused. That was
how her travelling became bungled as she no longer got a positive signal from
Olanrewaju.
Recently, she came to Sunday Tribune to report the story at the
Crime Desk after which she lodged a complaint at the Oyo State Police Command
headquarters. The Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Indabawa, ordered the State
Intelligence Bureau, headed by Anthony Okonkwo, a Chief Superintendent of
Police, to investigate the case. The accused, who was said to have been staying
away from home since he was summoned by Crime Reports to state his own side of
the story, was arrested by detectives on Saturday, December 21 in the early
hours of the day while returning from church where he slept.
During interrogation, he admitted collecting the money from Tawa
but said that he used N34,000 from it to obtain international passport for Tawa
and himself while he quickly invested the rest in an engine business so that it
could yield more money to add to the one given to Tawa. He stated further that
he was duped by the man he gave the money to, adding that the man had since
been on the run.
After the charges were read to the accused, he pleaded not
guilty and was granted bail in the sum of N2million, a level 13 civil servant
as surety and two passport photographs.
The case was adjourned till February 12, 2014 for further
hearing.
Culled sun
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