Lagos Court Jails Man for N37m Forex Fraud
A Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos, has sentenced a forex trader, Henry Daniel, to one year imprisonment for defrauding an investor of N37 million under the guise of a foreign exchange investment scheme.
Justice Olubunmi Abike-Fadipe convicted Daniel on Monday after finding him guilty of obtaining money by false pretence and stealing. The defendant, who operated under the business name Equigro Financial Services, was prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Lagos Zonal Directorate 1, Ikoyi.
According to the charge, Daniel fraudulently collected N37 million from Mr. Eze Onyekachukwu between January and October 2020, falsely claiming the funds would be invested in forex trading. Instead, he diverted the money for personal use and failed to refund the victim.
The prosecution, led by Babatunde Sonoiki, presented three witnesses and tendered documentary evidence during the trial. Although Daniel pleaded not guilty, the court held that the evidence before it proved the case beyond reasonable doubt.
In her judgment, Justice Abike-Fadipe sentenced the convict to one year imprisonment with an option of a N2 million fine. The court also ordered him to undertake 50 hours of community service and to pay restitution of N15.6 million to the victim.
The charges were brought under Sections 1(3) and 8(a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act No. 14 of 2006, as well as Sections 278 and 285 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.
Daniel’s conviction followed his arrest by EFCC operatives after investigations revealed that he neither invested the funds in forex trading as promised nor returned the money to the petitioner.
The EFCC reiterated its commitment to sanitising Nigeria’s financial space and warned members of the public to exercise due diligence before investing in forex and other high-yield schemes.
