In a Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Gwagwalada, a 29-year-old internet fraudster, Eke Emmanuel, also known as Miller Fulton, has been sentenced to one year imprisonment for defrauding his victim of $700. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) prosecuted Emmanuel on a charge of cheating by impersonation, to which he pleaded guilty and begged for mercy.
Justice Aliyu Shafa delivered the judgment, finding Emmanuel guilty and sentencing him to a term in a correctional center. The judge, however, offered an option of a N200,000 fine. Additionally, upon the application of Prosecution Counsel Chiamaka Njoku, Justice Shafa ordered that the iPhone X cellphone used in the crime and the $700 recovered from Emmanuel be forfeited to the Federal Government. The judge also mandated that Emmanuel swear to an affidavit of good behavior post-sentence or upon payment of the fine.
During his plea for leniency, Emmanuel expressed deep remorse for his actions. His Defense Counsel, P.E. Egeolu, pleaded on his behalf for the court to show mercy.
Egeolu said that the convict, who has no criminal records, was remorseful for committing the offence.
Earlier, the prosecution counsel, Njoku said that the convict sometimes in 2023 cheated by impersonation when he assumed the identity of one Miller Fulton, a military personnel from Denver, Colorado, United States.
She said that the convict fraudulently obtained the sum of 700 dollars from some unsuspecting victims.
The prosecutor said the offence contravened the provisions of Section 321 of the Penal Code, punishable under section 324 of the Code.
By an oral application, Njoku requested that the court order the forfeiture of the cellphone and money recovered from the convict to the Federal Government through the EFCC.
