An Ikeja Magistrates’ Court on Monday, August 7, 2023 sentenced a 48-year old man, Akanbi Abdulrahman, to 1 year and 3 months imprisonment or pay an option of ₦5 million for stealing a Toyota Venza, valued ₦5 million.
The Magistrate, Mrs A. K. Shonubi, sentenced the convict after she found him guilty of stealing and obtaining by false pretense.
Shonubi discharged and acquitted the convict on the count of conspiracy. The sentence is to run concurrently should he fail to pay the fine.
“It will serve as a deterrent to others,” she said.
Shonubi also ruled that the sentence should be with hard labour. The convict, a business man who resided at 6, Elibel St., Abesan Estate, Abesan, Lagos was tried for conspiracy, stealing and obtaining by false pretense.
Earlier, the prosecutor, Insp Innocent Odugbo, told the court that the offences were committed on May 31, 2018 at Block 7, Ipaja, Lagos. Innocent said that the convict went to the garage of Mr Abimbola Ajayi to buy a Toyota Venza, valued at ₦5 million.
The prosecutor said that the convict took the complainant to a first bank branch where he lied to have transferred the money to his account. The prosecutor said that based on how he looked serious and sincere, the Toyota Venza was released to him.
Odugbo said that the complainant didn’t get the alert and all efforts to see the convict failed until he was arrested through an information the police got about his whereabout.
The offences according to the prosecutor contravened Sections 287, 314 and 411 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
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