Admin l Tuesday, March 22, 2022
LAGOS, Nigeria – Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo of the Lagos High Court, Ikeja, has granted bail to Kolawole Adedayo Erinle, who allegedly defrauded Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences in the sum of N50 million with two sureties in the like sum.
Justice Taiwo granted bail after after taking cognisance of the amount involved in the alleged fraud, following arguments from his counsel, Yinka Farounbi that the offence is bailable.
The court also held that one of the sureties must be a land owner within the jurisdiction of the Court and the other a Level 16 civil servant with three years tax evidence, stressing that they are both to show evidence of gainful employment.
The Judge further ordered that the defendant deposit all his international passports pending the conclusion of the case. The defendant was ordered to be remanded at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre pending the perfection of the bail conditions.
Kolawole Adedayo Erinle was arraigned alongside his firm, Rinde-Remdex Nigeria Limited, on March 11, 2022 by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on an amended three-count charge bordering on conspiracy, retention of proceeds of criminal conduct, and obtaining money under false pretence.
He was alleged to have defrauded the Kansas City University of Medicine and Biosciences (KCUMB) in the United States of about $1,412,509 USD.
The charge reads in parts: “Kolawole Adedayo Erinle and Edward Dada (still at large), sometime in 2019, at Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, conspired to falsely represent yourselves as J.E. Dunn, a local construction company in America, with intent to gain monetary advantage in the sum of $1,410,000 (One Million Four-Hundred and Ten Thousand United States Dollars) by creating a fake domain name jedunn.org and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 8 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act No 14, 2006.”
It further reads: “Kolawole Adedayo Erinle, Rinde-Remdex Nigeria Limited and Edward Dada (still at large) on or about the 3rd day of May 2019, at Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, retain the control of $1,410,000 (One Million Four-Hundred and Ten Thousand United States Dollars) in your Access Bank account, which sum you knew to be proceeds of various internet and cybercrime.”
He, however, pleaded “not guilty” to the charges when he was first arraigned on March 11, 2022. The case has been adjourned till April 28, 2022 for commencement of trial.
