Court Jails MTN ‘Distributor 3 Years After Spending 6 Years In Prison Awaiting Trial
Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo of the Lagos Special Offences Court in Ikeja on Monday convicted and sentenced a self-acclaimed MTN Commission Plc marketer, Gloria Ubani, to six years imprisonment for stealing and for obtaining money under false pretence.
The convict was however immediately released from custody of the Kirikiri Prisons because she had already spent more than the required sentence as an awaiting trial inmate.
Ubani, who was arraigned in court in 2013 over the offence spent six and a half years in prison custody although the offence attracted three years jail term.
Trouble started for Ubani, when she was arrested in 2013 and was slammed a 12 count charge of obtaining money under false pretence and issuance of dud cheque, offences contrary to Section 419 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State and Federal Laws.
The prosecution claimed that the convict obtained over 34 million naira from one Charles Obi, N4 million from Ariyo Abiodun and few other victims with the promise to sell to them fairly used goods from MTN as she claimed to be a major distributor of the company.
The goods she offered up for sales included: transformers, generator sets among others
When she failed to produce those goods as and when due and couldn’t refund her client’s money, she went underground until she was arrested and charged to court.
Although the convicts was granted bail by the court, she was unable to meet the terms.
At the trial, documentary and confessional statements showed her culpable in some of the charges, hence she was convicted.
The mother of two who claimed to own a company, G&N Integrated Service, located at 166 Ijesha Road, Surulere area of the state pleaded not guilty to all the counts, the court found her guilty on counts: 1, 3, 10, 11 and 12 but not guilty on 2, 4, 5 and 9.
Although Justice Taiwo sentenced her to three years imprisonment, the judge said she is free to go because the convict had spent the period of the punishment in detention before the matter was concluded.
