Scales Olatunji, a well-known international scammer, was given a 235-year prison term for online fraud and money laundering.
Olatunji was found guilty and given a sentence by Justice Agatha Okeke of the Federal High Court. He had pleaded not guilty following his arraignment in July 2019 on 45-count charges.
One reads, "That you, Scales Olatunji Ishola “M”, Meraiyebu Charles “M”(at large), Gabriel Adeyemi Olugbenga “M”(at large), Ojomo Oluwatobi Ayodele “M”(at large) and Adekola Oluwatoyin “M”(at large), between January 2017 to October 2018 converted N525,172,580".
The theft of the money, which was committed in violation of Section 18(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 (as amended) and is punishable under Section 15(3) of the same Act, was part of the proceeds of fraud (business email compromise and identity theft), both of which are illegal activities.
Additionally, on or around May 15, 2018, Olatunji wrote emails to Monica Goulmoen of the Charity Association regarding the construction of a football field for Kobane's youth on [email protected].
He asked for and was given €64,000 while posing as former Norwegian Football Association President Per Ravn Omdal.
The crime violates Section 22 (3)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Act 2015 and is penalized under Section 22 (4) of the same Act.
In his ruling, Justice Okeke found Olatunji guilty of all 45 charges brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, or EFCC.
According to the judge, the prosecution proved his guilt by using witnesses whose testimony was consistent throughout.
Olatunji was given a sentence of seven years in jail on offenses 1 through 5, and five years in prison on counts 6 through 45.
The EFCC will distribute the funds in his account to the impacted Norwegian citizens.
Homes owned by Olatunji in Lekki:
Following the convict's capture on March 20, 2019, at his Ikota home, the EFCC opened an investigation.
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