The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ibadan Zonal Command, on Tuesday in a statement disclosed that it has arraigned 11 students of Obafemi Awolowo University, OAU, Ile-Ife, Osun State.
The statement was made regarding their suspected involvement in online fraud in front of Justice Nathaniel Ayo-Emmanuel of the Federal High Court, Osogbo.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission , EFCC , has arraigned 11 students of Obafemi Awolowo University , OAU, in Ile-Ife, Osun State before Justice Nathaniel Ayo-Emmanuel of the Federal High Court in Osogbo.
The students face charges related to their alleged involvement in internet fraud.
The students, identified as Perekebena Micah, Nnekwelugo Nnaemeka, Moyosore Oluwasakin, Aghwaritoma Obaro, Daniel Maiye, Gbolahan Adesina, Yinka Jayeola, Olumuyiwa Adeleye, Abiola Oluwadare, Busari Ayodeji, and Okesipe Paul, were arraigned on various counts of charges.
According to the EFCC, nine of the defendants were arraigned on one-count charges, while two of them, Micah and Obaro, had six-count charges filed against each of them.
The charges include fraudulent impersonation of individuals from the United States for the purpose of gaining an advantage, which is a violation of the Cyber Crimes Act of 2015.
The students all pleaded “not guilty” to the charges.
After their arraignment, the prosecution counsel requested trial dates and the remand of the defendants in a correctional center.
Defense counsels for Ayodeji, Adesina, Oluwasakin, Micah, Adeleye, and Okesipe informed the court of their “motions for bail applications” filed on behalf of their clients and urged the court to admit the defendants to bail.
The defendants were granted bail by Justice Ayo-Emmanuel, who also placed various restrictions on them, such as a bond amount and two sureties for each defendant.
The defendants were among the 69 people detained during a midnight raid on the basis of actionable information indicating that they had engaged in fraudulent activities related to the internet.
The defendants were remanded in the Ilesha Correctional Center in Osun State until their bail conditions were completed. The court postponed the matters until November 29 and December 12, 2023, for the start of the trial.
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