Davidson Iriekpen
19 December 2007
Lagos — An Ikeja High Court has sentenced an Advance Fee Fraud (419) kingpin, Adedeji Alumile (a.k.a Ade Bendel), to six years imprisonment for defrauding an Egyptian General, Abdel Azim Attia of over $500,000 (N65million) in 2003.
Delivering judgment on the matter, Justice Mufutau Olokooba, described the accused person's action as an international embarrassment to the nation, adding that not giving him a full weight of the law would be inappropriate.
He was also ordered to refund US$500,000 that he defrauded the complainant.
"The offence is an international embarrassment to the nation and the courts do have no mercy for such offence. To serve as deterrent to present generation and upcoming generation.
Not giving the accused a full weight of the law is inappropriate, I hereby sentence the accused to six years in imprisonment on one charge," he said.
He had, however, almost completed the sentence, having being in detention since 2003.
Earlier in his allocutus, counsel to the accused, Mr Olalekan Ojo, said "I want to state the following fact: the accused person was a first time offender. A young man of 41years, with a wife and children.
The accused made full restitution and paid $200,000 to the complainant through the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). It is important that the accused is given full rehabilitation. The offence for which he was found guilty has a maximum sentence of seven years."
Ade Bendel was arrested and arraigned by EFCC and charged alongside one Chief Olafemi Ayeni in 2003, claiming to be the owner of World-wide Company in charge of American currencies.
The accused with one Olafemi Ayeni, upon going to the office of the complainant, told him he wanted to buy some chemicals that would be used to clean security covers from the notes in boxes, for which the complainant parted with the sum.
He later found out that the organisation was fake, and the so-called chemicals only existed in the imagination of the swindlers.
Attia, who was in court when the accused person was convicted was, however, full of praises for the EFCC and the court for the judgment.
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