Justice P.I. Ajoku of the Federal High Court, Ibadan on Wednesday, March 20, 2019, convicted three persons, including an undergraduate in a Southwest-based Polytechnic, who were prosecuted by the EFCC.
The convicts bagged four months jail term for involving in cyber-related crimes. They are Segun Isaac (a Polytechnic student, who duped his victims under the name Tracie Morgan); Olamide O. Samuel and Afolabi Wasiu.
They were charged with obtaining under false pretence, an offence contrary to Section 22(3) (b) and punishable under Section 22(4) of the Cyber Crimes (Prohibition, Prevention Etc) Act 2015. Isaac and Olamide were initially on two-count and five-count charges respectively, while Afolabi was originally arraigned on an eight-count charge.
The Commission agreed to replace the original charges with a one count charge after their lawyer, Beauty Ekah, led them to a plea bargain in order to persuade the court to temper justice with mercy.
Isaac’s charge, which reflects others’ tone, reads: “That you Segun Isaac (aka Tracie Morgan, Cara Coppedge) sometime in 2019, at Ibadan within the Ibadan jurisdiction of this Honorable court, fraudulently impersonated one Tracie Morgan a white female via your email [email protected]thorough a computer system and network to one Alan in order to obtain the sum of USD $600 (Six hundred United States of America Dollars) and thereby committed an offense contrary to Section 22 (3)(b) and punishable under Section 22(4) of the Cyber Crimes (Prohibition, Prevention Etc)Act, 2015.”
The jail term takes effect from their day of arrest.