Court Jails Pastor 2 Years Over N2.1m Visa Scam
A Lagos State Magistrates Court in Igbosere on Wednesday convicted and sentenced a 35, year-old pastor, Michael Njoteah to two years imprisonment for obtaining N2.1 million under false pretences.
Magistrate Mrs O. O. Adeshina sentenced Njoteah without an option of fine after she found him guilty of only one count out of the six-count charge brought against him by the police.
The court ordered that the sentence should take effect from yesterday, March 11.
Njoteah was first arraigned on April 18, 2019, on a six-count charge bordering on conspiracy, fraud and stealing.
He pleaded not guilty and was granted bail in the sum of N450,000 two sureties in like sum.
The police prosecutor, Sergeant, Friday Mameh, who called five witnesses during the trial, told the court that the defendant committed the offences sometime in 2017 and the year 2018 in Lagos.
Mameh said that Njoteah fraudulently obtained the sum of N1.3 million from the complainant, one Samuel Ezeoha, in the pretext of procuring an Australian visa for him.
He said the convict also obtained the sum of N850, 000 from another person, one Chukwunonso Okeke, under guise of procuring visa for him but failed to do so.
Mameh told the court that the convict also induced other people to visit Lagos State from other states with the intent of defrauding them.
He said the total money fraudulently obtained by the convict was N2.1 million.
According to Mameh, the offences are contrary and punishable under Sections 287, 314 318 and 411 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
The convict, however, told the court that he was not a visa agent but collected the monies from the complainants in other to connect them with a visa agent.
He also told the court that he gave all the money to the visa agent.
