TRACKING___Justice M. O. Opara of Rivers State High Court has sentenced a businessman, Sampson Onyekachi, to two years imprisonment for issuing a N5.1 million dishonored cheque. Onyekachi was prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Port Harcourt Zonal office on a one-count charge bordering on issuance of dishonored cheque contrary to Section 1 (1) (a) and punishable under Sub-section (b) (i ) and (ii) of the Dishonored Cheques (Offences) Act Cap D11 of the Reversed Edition (Laws of the Federation) 2007.
The Charge reads: “That you, Mr. Sampson Onyekachi, trading on the name and style ESTEEMED TECHNICAL NIGERIA LTD, Sometime in May 2016, at Port Harcout in the Port Harcout Judicial Division of the High Court of Rivers State, did fraudulently issue a Sterling Bank Plc cheque with No 144 50110 dated 13th day of May 2016 in the sum of Five Million, One Hundred Thousand Naira (N5,100,000) in your business Name, ESTEEMED TECHNICAL NIGERIA LTD holder of account No. 0014945882 to Elas Ventures Nigeria Enterprise.”
But the cheque was returned unpaid within three months of issue due to insufficient funds standing to the credit of the drawer. The Acting Head, Media and Publicity of EFCC, Tony Orilade, said in a statement yesterday that Onyekachi had issued the cheque as part payment of a total sum of N9, 610,000 which was paid into the account of his company as payment for the supply of equipment to Daewoo Company, Brass, Bayelsa State.
He said: “The petitioner, who secured the contract, had approached Onyekachi and secured his consent to use his company’s (Esteemed Technical Nigeria Limited) invoice to execute the contract…
“A year after the transactions were consummated, the defendant issued the petitioner a cheque for N5,100,000 which he presented but was returned unpaid for lack of funds” But on Tuesday, Justice Opara convicted and sentenced the defendant to two years imprisonment. “He was also ordered to pay N3,000,000 as restitution to the nominal complainant,” Orilade added.
