The Special Fraud Unit (SFU) yesterday arrested former Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Alhaja Sinatu Aderoju Ojikutu, who was declared wanted on June 19, last year.
Ojikutu, who was seized in her home on Lagos Island by detectives of the unit, was declared wanted for allegedly obtaining N130million from a man, Cajethan Okekearu, under false pretences.
Ojikutu, 67, allegedly connived with her son, Samson Adebisi Ojikutu Jnr, who is currently in USA, to commit the fraud.
The suspect and her son were parties to the sale of a land and both signed the agreement given to the complainant and obtained N130 million from him.
Ojikutu, who claimed it was a genuine plot identification error, refunded N50 million to the complainant and promised to refund the balance as soon as she disposed of her two properties, which she had put up for sale. She said she had injected the said money in her business.
Police said before the case was reported to the unit, Ojikutu had made an undertaking and payment plan at a police station which was billed to run from September, 2012 to November 2012, but according to them, she defaulted owing to lack of fund.
The Commissioner of Police (SFU), Mr Tunde Ogunsakin, said: “The whole illicit deal got blown open when the complainant began developing the land and was on the verge of completion when the bona fide owner of the land surfaced and indeed it was discovered that the land that the suspect sold does not belong to her. She actually sold Plot 23 Block 4, while Plot 24 Block 4 already has a property on it.
“Investigation revealed that the land she sold did not belong to her; it belonged to one Mr. Afolabi. It was also discovered that the Plot 24 Block 4, which actually belonged to the late Samson Adebisi Ojikutu Snr, the suspect’s husband, who died in 2008, was sold by him in 1995 and the suspect was a living witness who appended her signature to the sale of the land. A financial institution, which was in possession of the Certificate of Occupancy (C of O) after payment, also tendered the original C of O which the former Deputy Governor of Lagos State had earlier declared missing and even sworn an affidavit to.”
The suspect sued the Inspector-General of Police, the Commissioner of Police (SFU) and the complainant at the state High Court, Igbosere, Lagos, with suit M/581/2013, praying the court to restrain the police from any further investigation into the matter and the violation of her fundamental human rights.
Justice Obadina on December 17, 2013, dismissed the suit for lack of merit, ruling that the police has the power to prosecute the applicants, Alhaja Sinatu Aderoju Ojikutu and her son, Sampson Adebisi Ojikutu (Jnr) since police investigation revealed that there is prima-facie case of obtaining money by false pretences against them. She added that the court would not restrain the police from carrying out their statutory functions.
Ogunsakin, who said the SFU had made futile efforts to arrest her after the Justice Obadina’s ruling, said she would be arraigned at the Federal High Court, Lagos, today.
