TRACKING____A final year student of one of the private universities in Ondo State, Achievers University, Owo, has been sentenced to 13 years imprisonment. The student, Fisayo Adetoro, who is a first class undergraduate was also handed N1 million fine after he was found guilty of impersonation, forgery and money laundering. Adetoro, who was said to be a first class candidate on 4.5 Cumulative Grade Point Aggregate (CGPA), was convicted by Justice Folashade Olubanjo of the Federal High Court 1, Akure, in a criminal case filed against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ibadan zonal office. He was originally arraigned on January 18, 2017 on a six-count charge, but pleaded not-guilty to all the charges.
The allegations, according to the charge sheet, include falsely representing himself to be Bawa Mohammed Sanni, to defraud his victims to the tune of thousands of United States Dollars. He was also accused of using the fake name to register for a Nigerian driver’s licence bearing his photograph, as well as laundering sums of money running into millions of naira.
The EFCC, represented by Dr. Ben Ubi, and Sanusi Galadanchi, called five witnesses, including two victims of his money laundering activities, to prove its case, while the accused called three witnesses. After evaluating the arguments on both sides, the presiding judge found Adetoro guilty in four of the six charges. Justice Olubanjo, however, considered the convict for suspended sentence of six months community service.
The judge yielded to his counsel’s pleadings which were premised on his health, academic standing and the fact that he had refunded all the money he fraudulently collected. The suspended sentence, according to the court, would only stand if he observes the days without breaking. The judge warned that if he misses one day within the six months stretch, the original sentence will be fully effected.
