The police on Tuesday charged Timothy Atolagbe, a 40-year-old fake visa agent, for receiving N9,879,928.00 under the false pretence of assisting his victim in acquiring a Canadian study visa.
Atolagbe, who was arraigned before Magistrate D. S. Odukoya, is charged with conspiracy, acquiring by false pretences, and forgery.
Inspector Chinedu Njoku, the police prosecutor, told the court that the defendant and those who remain at large planned to conduct the crimes between July 2023 and June 2024.
Njoku informed the court that the event occurred in Ajangbadi, a neighbourhood of Lagos State.
He claimed Atolagbe got the money from a prospective student, Damilola Michael, under the guise of assisting him with his Canadian study visa, which he knew was fraudulent.
The prosecutor told the court that the defendant allegedly faked documents from the CBBC Career College in Canada to extort money from the complainant, Michael, despite knowing they were bogus.
Njoku further told the court that Atolagbe got the sum of N150,000 from one Durosimi Adeola on the premise of facilitating his employment, which he knew was fake.
According to the prosecution, the acts committed violated Sections 411, 314 (1) (a), and 365 (2) (b) of the Lagos State Criminal Laws 2015.
However, the defendant pleaded not guilty to the allegations filed against him. Magistrate Odukoya granted him bail in the amount of N4 million, with two sureties each in the same amount.
The court further ordered that evidence of tax payment to the Lagos State Government and the sureties’ addresses be verified.
She postponed the case until January 17, 2025, for mention.
