Court Jails Man For Impersonating EFCC Official
By Felix Kuyinu
The Ikeja Special Offences Court in Lagos has convicted one Tobi Augustine for impersonating an official of the Economic Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
Justice Rahman Oshodi, during the court proceedings on Thursday, sentenced the offender to 18 months in prison for the unlawful act.
Following the convict’s guilty plea to the charge of impersonation, Justice Oshodi considered the severity of the offence. He held that the jailer’s actions had undermined public confidence in the EFCC.
Prior to the judge’s ruling, the EFCC Counsel, Fanen Anun, called a witness, Umar Abdulkariri, who tendered exhibits used by Augustine in carrying out the act.
Abdulkariri tendered the face caps, jackets, and t-shirts bearing EFCC and Nigerian Army insignia.
The witness told the courthouse: “The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps handed over the the offender to the EFCC on August 16, 2024.
“During prosecution, several items were recovered which include two EFCC jackets, one Nigerian Army Special Force face cap and long-sleeved t-shirt, one EFCC face cap and one Infinix mobile phone.
“Augustine committed the offence sometime in August 2024 by presenting himself as an EFCC officer to confer a financial advantage to himself.
“The offence committed contravened Section 380 of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State, 2015.
Having listened to the witness, The judge said:“Your actions impersonating an EFCC operative severely undermine public confidence in a crucial law enforcement institution.
“In mitigation, I note that you pleaded guilty at the first opportunity, thereby saving judicial time and you cooperated with law enforcement by providing a confessional statement, and you are a first-time offender.
“Section 380 of the Criminal Law prescribes a punishment of three years imprisonment for the offence of impersonation.
“Having carefully weighed these factors, I hereby sentence you to 50 per cent of the prescribed sentence which is 18 months imprisonment.”
The judge said the sentence should begin on August 10, 2024, the date of his remand.
