The Port Harcourt Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has secured the conviction and sentencing of Azubuike Mamwu Obasi before Justice P. I. Ajoku of the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State for currency racketeering.
Obasi, in a statement signed by the EFCC Head, Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, was jailed after pleading guilty to a four-count charge bordering on illegal acquisition of bank notes and carrying out banking services without an appropriate licence.
He pleaded guilty to the charges when they were read to him.
In view of the plea of the defendant, prosecuting lawyer, E. K. Bakam prayed the court to convict and sentence him accordingly.
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The defence lawyer, B. E. Onuoha, did not oppose the prayers of the prosecution but urged the court to temper justice with mercy, maintaining that the defendant was a first time offender with no previous criminal records.
Justice Ajoku found the defendant guilty as charged, sentenced him to six months in the Correctional Service on count one to four with N100,000 as an option of fine payable into the Consolidated Revenue Account of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Sentence was to run concurrently with effect from the date of arrest.
The court also made an order forfeiting to the Federal Government of Nigeria the sum of N554,600, N20,000 new bank notes and the POS device recovered from the convict.
Additionally, the sum of N30,000 paid into the Access Bank account of the convict by an EFCC covert operative was forfeited and returned to him.