Police Drag Abuja Lawyer to Court For Forgery, Defrauding a Woman of 29Mil

The Police authorities have dragged a lawyer, Everestus Ugwuowo, and three others before a Federal High Court in Abuja for allegedly defrauding a woman of the sum of N29 million and forging documents to sell Abuja house.

The amended charge marked, FHC/ABJ/CR/121/2018 presently before Justice Obiora Egwuatu has the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) as the complainant
The Police boss, in the amended 11- Count charge, filed on April 29, 2019 by ACP Simon Lough (SAN), also joined Umar Sanda Adamu, Usman Audu and Adole Christopher Oche, a staff of Bureau of Public Procurement as 2nd to 4th defendants respectively.

The defendants, who were arraigned in 2018, granted bail and pleaded not guilty were alleged to have committed the offence in connivance with Damian Audu, Joseph Omale, Kingsley Awodi, now at large, in September 2017 in Abuja.
In count one, Ugwuowo, was alleged to have conspired with others to commit felony by obtaining money under false pretence and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 8 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act 2006.

In count two of the charge, they were alleged to have, while acting in concert and with intent to defraud Mrs Grace Awajash Dauda, forged letters of authority to sale; consent to assign House 11, 62 Road, Gwarimpa Estate with No. FHA/OCE/GWA II OWU C; Irrevocable Power of Attorney and Deed of Assignment.

The letters were purported to have been signed by Grema Mohammed Umar with three Federal Housing Authority (FHA) receipts, letters of offer, letters of allocation, letters of checking in of owner-occupiers in respect of the house.

These were alleged to have been used to deceitfully collect the sum of N29 million from Mrs Dauda on the pretence that they had the authority to sell the property.
“And having collected her money, you shared it among yourselves, when you know or had reason to believe that you do not have the authority to sell the house and all the documents you gave to her were forged.

“You thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1) and punishable under Section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act 2006,” it reads.
In count 10, the lawyer was accused of having issued Mrs Dauda a dud cheque on December 1, 2017, for the sum of N29 million “in repayment of the money you deceitfully collected from her, which was presented for payment on the 6th of December, 2017 and returned dishonoured for lack of sufficient funds In your account.”

The offence is said to be contrary to Section 1(1) of the Dishonoured Cheque Act CAP Dil LFN 2004.
Upon resumed hearing in the matter, the 1st prosecution witness (PW1), Ismaila Bana, after his evidence, was cross-examined by Ugwuowo’s lawyer, Patrick Otsima.

Bana, an in-law to the nominal complainant, while being cross-examined, told the court that Ugwuowo only gave Mrs Dauda photocopies of the house documents for verification at the Federal High Court.

Although the 2nd defendant (Sanda Adamu)’s lawyer, Ebuka Aneke-Agu,’did not cross-examine the witness, the PW1 was also cross-examined by the 3rd defendant’s lawyer before Justice Egwuatu adjourned the matter till July 22 for continuation of trial.