Alleged Visa Racketeers Arraigned For Defrauding Victims Of N20 Million
Two men, Odunayo Olaniyi Rasheed, 61, and Abraham Ebaluegbeifo Osagie, 39, have been arraigned before a Tinubu Chief Magistrate’s Court in Lagos on charges of conspiracy, forgery, and obtaining N20 million under false pretences.
The duo was brought before Chief Magistrate B. A. Sonuga by officers of the Force Criminal Investigation Department (Force CID) Annex, Alagbon Ikoyi, Lagos. The prosecution, led by S. A. Ogala, alleged that the defendants defrauded Kingsley Ugochukwu Chinedu, Chigozie Raymond Inno, and other victims by falsely promising to procure United Kingdom visas for them.
Ogala informed the court that the defendants carried out the alleged fraud in October 2023, using forged documents to convince their victims at the United Kingdom Embassy in Lagos.
The charges against the defendants, according to the prosecutor, violate Sections 411, 356(1), and 314 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.
Both Rasheed and Osagie pleaded not guilty to the three counts of conspiracy, forgery, and obtaining money by false pretences. The prosecutor requested a trial date and asked the court to remand the defendants in custody pending the trial.
The defence counsel, however, made an oral application for bail, arguing that the defendants are first-time offenders and that the charges are bailable.
Chief Magistrate Sonuga granted each defendant bail in the sum of N2 million with two sureties. The sureties are required to reside within the court’s jurisdiction and provide evidence of tax payments to the Lagos State government.
The case was adjourned to October 16, 2024, for mention, with the defendants remanded in the Nigerian Correctional Services (NCoS) pending the perfection of their bail conditions.
