Crime
‘Court Adjourns N152M Property Fraud Case’ — Oak Homes CEO Faces Charges Over Failed Apartments
A Federal High Court in Lagos has adjourned the fraud and attempted murder case against the Chief Executive Officer of Oak Homes Limited, Olukayode Olusanya, to April 15, 2025.
Justice Musa Kakaki set the date after hearing arguments from both the prosecution and defence over the admissibility of the defendant’s statement and a petition against him.Olusanya and his company face four counts brought by the police, including conspiracy, threat to life, obtaining money by false pretense, and stealing.
He was arraigned on November 26, 2024, but pleaded not guilty.According to the police, Olusanya conspired with Lynda Umeh, the company’s head of sales and marketing, who is currently at large, to defraud a Nigerian-American engineer, Anthony Ugbebor.The police said that between November 8, 2017, and August 4, 2020, both allegedly deceived Ugbebor into paying N152m, for two three-bedroom apartments at the Oak Residence, Victoria Island, with a promise to hand over possession by February 28, 2019.
However, they failed to deliver the property.The police prosecution counsel, Supol M.A. Omo-Osagie, further alleged that Olusanya stole the funds and later conspired to murder Ugbebor for reporting him to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and other authorities.During Tuesday’s hearing, Omo-Osagie called the first prosecution witness, Assistant Superintendent of Police Egho Amiebelomo.The officer testified that the police received a petition from Ugbebor, which led to an investigation.Amiebelomo recounted how Olusanya initially refused to cooperate with police inquiries, claiming the Assistant Inspector General’s office was “too small” for him.According to the witness, he was eventually arrested at his office and later released on bail. However, he absconded for months before being rearrested and brought to court.The prosecution attempted to submit Olusanya’s statement and the complainant’s petition as evidence, but defence counsel, Agboola Adeleke (SAN), objected, arguing that the statement was not taken in the presence of a lawyer or video-recorded, as required under Section 9 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.In response, Omo-Osagie countered that the defence’s objection was misplaced, citing Section 15(4) of the Act, which allows for statements to be recorded with or without video evidence.
He also argued that the petition was a public document and, therefore, admissible in court.“Sections 100-104 of the Evidence Act 2011, particularly Section 103, stipulate that any document in the possession of a public officer is a public document,” Omo-Osagie stated.“The petition originated from a private citizen but was officially received and acted upon by the AIG, with official stamps and directives. That makes it a public document, admissible under the law.“The key question here is whether this document is relevant to the trial of the defendant. Since it is, we urge the court to dismiss the objections raised by the defence and admit the evidence,” he added.After listening to both sides, Justice Kakaki adjourned the case to April 15, 2025, for ruling on the objections and continuation of trial.
(S) The Nigerian Lawyer
Crime
Desmond Chukwuebuka Accused of Financial Misconduct, Forged Academic Records, And Theft of School Property
A school teacher around Abule Egba, Mr. Desmond Chukwuebuka Chiweuba, has been arraigned before Magistrate C.M. Owolabi at the Samuel Ilori Court, Ogba, on charges of theft, forgery, and fraudulent conversion of school funds. The court proceedings, which took place on May 26, 2025, have sparked concerns about accountability within the education sector.
Allegations of Financial Misconduct
An anonymous source within the school, which declined to be named, revealed that Mr. Desmond had been employed since 2023 as the institution’s Quality Assurance officer and, at times, as the Head Teacher. He was responsible for procuring books and other essential school materials. However, he allegedly inflated the prices of these purchases and, in some cases, removed the items from the school premises for personal use.
The school director was alerted to these irregularities, prompting an internal investigation. However, before the inquiry could be concluded, Mr. Desmond reportedly absconded. His disappearance led to a formal complaint being lodged with the police.
Fake Credentials and Forged Invoices Uncovered
During the police investigation, officers uncovered more fraudulent activities linked to Mr. Desmond. A search of his residence reportedly led to the discovery of a booklet of cash sales receipts, which he allegedly used to fabricate invoices for school purchases.
Further inquiries into his academic background raised more red flags. Mr. Desmond had claimed to be a graduate of the University of Lagos (UNILAG) with both a bachelor’s and a master’s degree. However, when repeatedly asked to present his certificates, he provided only a statement of results, offering various excuses for his failure to produce the official documents.
Legal Proceedings and Institutional Silence
Mr. Desmond has also been accused of forging invoices to justify fraudulent expenditures. His actions, described as gross misconduct, have tarnished the school’s reputation.
Efforts to obtain a comment from the school director were unsuccessful, as a representative stated she was unavailable.
Following his arraignment, the case has been adjourned until May 22, 2025, for further hearings.
Four officials of the United Bank for Africa, UBA, have been arrested by the Lagos State Police Command for allegedly stealing £138,924 (over N270 million) from international airlines’ accounts.
CSP Benjamin Hundeyin, the command’s public relations officer, made this disclosure in a statement on Monday.
Though the police did not name the bank involved in the scam, an investigation by The Witness revealed that the suspects are employees of the Tony Elumelu ‘s UBA Plc.
“The suspects conspired to siphon funds from domiciliary accounts into personal accounts before redistributing them to multiple destinations,” Hundeyin stated.
“The fraud was uncovered when the bank detected unauthorized transactions and alerted the police.”
Providing details of the arrests, Hundeyin said, “Subsequent investigations led to the arrest of the following suspects: Shuaib Oluwatobiloba Olaleye, male, aged 27, was arrested on March 12, 2025, in Ogun State. A Toyota Camry 2012/2013, suspected to be a proceed of the crime, was recovered from him.
“Oladunjoye Adegoke, male, aged 33, was arrested on March 13, 2025, in Victoria Island, Lagos. “A Toyota Camry (Pencil Light), suspected to be another proceed of the stolen funds, was also recovered.
“Further investigation led to the arrest of Austin Alfred, male, aged 38, the Supervisor of the bank’s Trade Services Department, and Jude Uzobuaku, male, aged 36, a processor in the same department. Both facilitated the illegal transfer of funds to foreign accounts.”
Police investigations revealed that the stolen funds were initially funneled into an account belonging to one of the suspects before being distributed to multiple other accounts to evade detection.
Authorities are now working to identify additional accomplices and recover the remaining funds.
“The suspects are in custody and will face prosecution as the investigation continues,” CSP Hundeyin stated.
Meanwhile, the police have urged the public to report suspicious financial transactions, reiterating their commitment to tackling economic crimes.
(WITNESSNGR)
The Ilorin Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC has arraigned six officials of Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board, SUBEB before Justice Akanbi of the State High Court, sitting in Ilorin, for fraud.They are facing prosecution on a four-count charge of breach of trust and misappropriation of funds to the tune of N96 million.The defendants are, Ahmed Husain Olarewaju, Director, Finance and Supply; Omole Omololu John, Controller, Finance and Accounts; Fatai Oyerinde, Coordinator, Salary Unit; Mujeeb Ibrahim, Executive Officer, Account and Salary Schedule; Salami Temitope Bashir and Dauda Aweda Quozim, who are staff of the Salary Unit in the Kwara SUBEB.
One of the charges reads: “That you, Ahmed Husain Olarewaju, Omole Omololu, Fatai Oyerinde, Mujeeb Ibrahim and Bashir Temitope Salami, between September 2018 and December 2018 at Ilorin, within the judicial division of the Kwara State High Court, being public officers in the service of the Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board (KWSUBEB) and in such capacity entrusted with a certain property to wit; the gross sum of N33,891,982.37 (Thirty-Three Million, Eight Hundred and Ninety-One Thousand, Nine Hundred and Eighty-Two Naira, Thirty-Seven Kobo) which sum formed part of the Kwara State SUBEB funds in account No: 0031236028 domiciled at Sterling Bank Plc, and you thereby committed the offence of criminal breach of trust in respect of the said property punishable under Section 315 of the Penal Code.”
Another charge reads: “That you, Ahmed Husain Olarewaju, Omole Omololu, Fatai Oyerinde, Mujeeb Ibrahim and Bashir Temitope Salami, between January 2019 and June 2019 of Ilorin, within the judicial division of the Kwara State High Court, being public officers in the service of the Kwara State Universal Basic Education Board and in such capacity entrusted with a certain property to wit: the gross sum of N30,406,629.09 (Thirty Million, Four Hundred and Six Thousand, Six Hundred and Twenty Nine Naira, Nine Kobo) which sum formed part of the Kwara State SUBEB funds in account no: 0031236028 domiciled at Stealing Bank Plc, and you thereby Committed the offence of criminal breach of trust in respect of the said property punishable under Section 315 of the Penal Code.”
They pleaded “not guilty”, when the charges were read to them, following which prosecution counsel, Andrew Akoja, asked the court for a trial date and for the defendants to be remanded in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Centre, while counsel to the defendants, led by Abdullahi Lawal made oral bail applications to their clients.Justice Akanbi adjourned until Wednesday, April 16, 2025 for trial and ordered that the defendants be remanded in the Nigerian Correctional Centre, Ilorin.
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