Mr Mukhtar Bello has been sentenced
to three years imprisonment for defrauding people several times and for
impersonation.
Bello arraigned by the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC and convicted by Justice M.T Tukur of Kaduna
State High Court on three counts of impersonation and obtaining by false
pretence.
The 43-year-old graduate of the
University Of Tampa, Florida was arrested on October 31, 2019 after he failed
to honour his obligations on a financial transaction with some ladies.
The EFCC spokesman, Wilson Uwujaren,
said: “A scene was created at an ATM point of one of the new generation banks
in Kaduna Metropolis, where some ladies tried to compel him to make withdrawal,
to pay for items he bought from them. An officer of the Commission who had come
to make use of the ATM at the time, was shocked to hear Mukhtar repeatedly
harassing the ladies saying, ‘I am an
EFCC staff, I will deal with you all’.
“The curious EFCC worker sought to know
what the problem was. Mukhtar told him he was from the Abuja office of the
Commission, but was in Kaduna on leave. Further questioning led to the discovery
that he was an impostor. He was brought to the Kaduna Zonal Office, where
another officer, who had previously encountered Mukhtar at a relaxation spot in
Kaduna immediately, recognised him, ‘as
the EFCC staff from Abuja.’”
According to Uwujaren, statements of
other witnesses were taken, affirming their encounter with Mukhtar, the EFCC
fake operator.
Investigation revealed that the suspect was
known for harassing and defrauding unsuspecting members of the public by
dropping the names of public agencies. Before now, he had claimed to be a
worker with the Federal Character Commission (between 2003 and 2007).
Upon arraignment, the defendant pleaded
guilty to the charges. Consequently, Justice Tukur convicted and sentenced him
to three years imprisonment with option of N250, 000 fines on each of the three
counts.
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