N2.7bn Fraud: Court To Begins Lagos Couple Trial January 10

Judge Mojisola Dada of the Special Offenses Court in Ikeja, Lagos, has set January 10, 2024 as the start of the trial for Oriyomi and Ruth Idowu. The couple was charged on November 28, 2023 by the Lagos Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

The couple was charged with 20 offenses relating to money laundering, theft, keeping stolen property, forgery, and collecting money under false pretenses totaling N2.7 billion, according to a statement posted on the EFCC’s official X feed on Tuesday.

Food Commodity Processing Enterprise, Bonway Food Processing Company Limited, Samee Idowu Company Limited, and Farmex Integrated Companies Limited—all owned by Ruth Idowu—were also arraigned with them.

One of the counts read, “Ruth Sameeha Idowu, aka Loiry Ventures, Oriyomi Kabeer Idowu, aka Yocli Ventures, Food Commodity Processing Enterprise, Bonway Food Processing Company Limited, Samee Idowu Company Limited, Farmex Integrated Companies Limited, sometime in 2023 in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this court, converted the sum of N10m to purchase a GLK Benz, purchase sum derived from converting the sum of N500m belonging to Creditpro Business Support Services with the aim of disguising the illegal origin of the funds.”

The statement further read, “The defendants pleaded ‘not guilty’ to the charges when they were read to them, thereby prompting the court to adjourn till Friday, December 15, 2023, for hearing of their bail applications.

“At Friday’s proceedings, James Alara, counsel for Ruth, who is the first defendant, informed the court that he was withdrawing an earlier motion for the bail of his client, and replacing it with a new one ‘due to the need to include the medical reports on the health status of the first defendant’.

“Counsel for the EFCC, Bilikisu Buhari, however, responded that the prosecution had earlier replied to the application being withdrawn and that it only received the new application on December 11, 2023.

“She explained further that the prosecution needed to authenticate the said medical reports attached to the new bail application.

Alara, thereafter, prayed the court for a short adjournment in order for the court to hear the new bail application of his client, ‘because of the health of the first defendant’.

“On his part, Babatunde Ogala, SAN, counsel for Oriyomi, the second defendant, moved the bail application for his client.”

In his decision about the second defendant’s bail request, Judge Dada approved N250 million in bail, plus an additional N250 million for two sureties.

In addition, Judge Dada postponed the trial to January 10 and February 2, 2024, as well as the first defendant’s bail hearing until December 20, 2023.