Admin l Tuesday, February 01, 2022
IKOYI, Lagos – A Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi today sentenced an America trained medical doctor and surgeon, John Adindu Nweke to 27 years Imprisonment without an option of fine.
Nweke who also claimed to be one Senator Haruna Baba Musa, representing Sokoto State, was convicted by Justice Abdulazeez Anka, after pronouncing him guilty of charges of conspiracy and obtaining by false pretence.
He was charged to court by the Police Special Fraud Unit (PSFU), Ikoyi, Lagos. Dr. Nweke’s journey to prison started on October 8, 2016, when he was brought before the court alongside Anike Igwe Stephen (now deceased) and Kelechi Chetachi Emenike (a cart pusher), on a five count-charge of conspiracy, money laundering, false representation and obtaining high class phones valued N35 Million from an online sale outlet, Konga.
Among the phones he fraudulently received from Konga Online Shopping Limited includes: nine Samsung phones; two blackberry phones; five iPhones; three Sunny Xperia phones and two cameras
They were also said to have issued dud cheques which were returned due to insufficient funds.
The prosecutor, Mr. Emmanuel Jackson, a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) and Officer in Charge of Lagos PSFU’s Legal Department, told the court that the Convict and others committed the offences between April and May 2015 contrary to Sections 8(a) and 1(1)(b) of the Advance Fee Fraud, and Section 15(1)(a)(ii)(3) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2004, as amended. Sections 17(b) of the money laundering Prohibition Act 2011, as amended in 2012. And Section 1(1)(a) of the Dishonored Cheques Offences Act, Cap. D. 11, laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
Midway into the 3-man trial, one of them, Stephen Aneke Igwe, became deceased and the police amended the charge. During the trial, the prosecutor, CSP Jackson, called several witnesses who includes the Investigation Police Officer (IPO), officials of Konga, Zenith Bank Plc, United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Fidelity Bank Plc, as well tendered several documents.
Delivering judgment, Justice Anka said that after legally analyzing all the arguments of parties before him, absolved the second defendant in the charge, Kelechi Chetachi Emenike, the cart pusher, of all the charges.
Justice Anka however, pronounced the America-trained medical doctor and surgeon, John Adindu Nweke guilty of conspiracy and obtaining the phones by false pretence, and consequently convicted him.
Speaking after the conviction, Dr. Nweke, pleaded for mercy, adding that he went into crime because he became frustrated when he could not get a job in Nigeria after being trained in America as a medical doctor and surgeon.
He said; “I went to America University of Caribbean on scholarship and trained as a medical doctor and surgeon. When I came back to Nigeria, I went to Federal Ministry of Education, Abuja, but I was told that my Certificates are not in line with Nigeria education system, I got frustrated and I met Stephen Aneke, who introduced me into the system after I treated her mummy of cancer through medicine”.
He asked to be give him a second chance and that he is now remorseful and learned in a hard way. The counsel to the convict, Mr. F. I. Okeke, joined his client to beg the court to have mercy on him as a first time offender.
But the prosecutor, CSP Jackson, urged the court to use his discretion in accordance with the sections of the laws that the convict was charged.
While citing Section 11 of the Advance Fee Fraud of the ACJA 2015 CSP Jackson told the court to order the Convict to make restitution of the money to Zenith Bank Plc, as the bank had paid the lost N35 Million back to Konga.
After listening to the submissions, the judge sentenced the medical doctor to seven and 20 years imprisonment. Justice Anka however held that the sentences are to run concurrently and commenced from the day he was arrested.
