Fraudster jailed for 120 years

[IceFM]

Published 13/10/2010 04:48:22 Nigerian Compass

The long arm of the law has caught up with a 48-year-old man, Olusoji Abiodun Ilori, as he was convicted and sentenced to a cumulative 120 years jail term by a High Court sitting in Ibadan, Oyo State for offences bordering on fraud, forgery and obtaining money by false pretence.

Arraigned on a 40-count charge, Ilori bagged three years jail term for each of the 40 counts. However, he is to spend only three years in prison as the jail terms is to run concurrently. Delivering judgement, Justice M. Abimbola stated that the jail sentence was to serve as a deterrent to the convict and others who may be nursing the idea of engaging in fraudulent activities.

He also stated that it is his hope that the three years in prison would serve as a reformatory period for the convict.

Ilori’s road to jail began when he was arraigned on September 17, 2009 by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). He has since then been in jail as he was refused bail by the court because of the enormity of the offence.

He was arrested in March 2009 at the Dugbe Post Office, Ibadan while posting over 200 scam letters containing forged United Kingdom documents meant to be delivered to unsuspecting victims.

He also had 213 letters purportedly signed by one Mr. Benson Nwosu of Fidelity Registrar, which Fidelity Bank Plc has since confirmed to be fake as the bank stated that it has no subsidiary company with the name Fidelity Registrar.

“The 213 letters purportedly signed by Mr. Benson Nwosu of Fidelity Registrar, were forged as we do not have any employee by such name. The blank letter head was also forged. The logo and lettering imitated our regular letter heads while they listed our Board of Directors underneath it, but we disown the document as it was forged and did not originate from us,” Fidelity Bank Plc had stated.

Ilori, in his advance fee fraud venture, also had 212 letters purportedly signed by one Neil Freeman, Centre Manager, Inland Revenue Centre for Non-Residents, Fitzroy House, Nottingham, United Kingdom.

However, EFCC through its collaboration with Serious Organised Crime Agency, SOCA, UK, discovered that though the address is correct, the content was false.”