The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC Gombe Zonal Office, on April 6, 2020, secured the conviction of one Prince Musa, who impersonated Senator Bulus Amos, representing Gombe South Senatorial District and used his name to defraud several prominent persons by soliciting for various sums of money.
He was arraigned before Justice J.A. Awak of the Gombe State High Court on a four-count charge bordering on cheating following his arrest in Jos, Plateau State.
The Senator had petitioned the EFCC alleging that an impostor was using his name to swindle innocent citizens, including a professor who was swindled of N250,000.
Investigation revealed that his mode of operation included using different phone numbers to hide his true identity. He also opened several bank accounts including, Anna Lokoja, 3022948354, First Bank; Eunice Patrick, 0022651193, Access/Diamond Bank; Daniel Bankole, 6021917949, Keystone Bank, and Ofobuike George, 6170371615, Fidelity Bank.
One of the counts reads: “That you, Prince Charles Haruna Musa, sometime in October 2019, at Gombe, Gombe State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court dishonestly induced one Professor Alhassan Mohammed Gani to deliver to you the sum of Two Hundred and Fifty Thousand Naira (N250,000.00) by falsely pretending to be Senator Bulus K. Amos, which pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 321 of the Penal Code Law and punishable under Section 324 of the said Code.”
When the charges were read to him, he pleaded “guilty” instantly, without wasting the time of the Court, given the weight of evidence garnered against him by the EFCC, which were attached to the charge sheet.
Counsel for the EFCC, G.I. Ndeh, therefore urged the Court to convict him, accordingly.
Defence counsel, Babangida Mohammed raised no objection, but rather pleaded with the Court to temper justice with mercy.
Delivering judgement after considering the allocutus made by the defence, Justice Awak convicted and fined him N20,000 (Twenty Thousand Naira) on each count. He was also ordered to pay N510,000 (Five Hundred and Ten Thousand Naira) as restitution to his victims within three months from the date of the ruling, failure of which, he is to serve five years in prison.
