The Special Offences Court in Ikeja has sentenced Ugwu Pascal Chijioke and Ibrahim Sadiq Adekunle to 46 years in prison for impersonation.
Justice O. O. Abike-Fadipe delivered the verdict, finding them guilty of impersonating Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) operatives and executing a fake court order.
The duo was arrested in May 2021 during an illegal operation at New Horizon Estate in Lekki, Lagos, following credible intelligence received by the EFCC. Upon their arrest, authorities recovered fake EFCC identity cards, jackets, and a court order supposedly from the Mushin Magistrate Court.
Initially arraigned on October 12, 2021, Chijioke and Adekunle were re-arraigned by the Lagos State Zonal Command of the EFCC on an amended five-count charge, including impersonation, attempted property theft, possession of false documents, and unlawfully wearing EFCC uniforms. They initially pleaded not guilty but later changed their pleas to guilty.
One of the charges stated that on or about May 12, 2021, the convicts attempted to defraud Oriyomi Johnson by presenting a fake court order to seize property at New Horizon Estate. Another charge noted that they unlawfully wore jackets with the EFCC’s official mark to mislead others about their authority.
Following their guilty pleas, prosecution counsel Abdulhamid Lamido Tukur reviewed the case facts and urged the court to convict and sentence the defendants accordingly.
Justice Abike-Fadipe sentenced them to seven years each on counts one to three, one year on count four, and eight months on count five. The sentences are to run concurrently.
