A Federal High Court, in Kaduna state has sentenced a 25 year old undergraduate of the University of Ilorin, Imonina Kingsley, to 20 years imprisonment on a four count of impersonation, possession of fraudulent documents and attempt to obtain money by false pretences.

The presiding judge, Justice Mohammed Shuaibu, made the ruling in a suit filled against the student by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Kingsley is alleged to have under false pretence, obtained the sum of $1000 from one Mr. Christopher De Troy through the use of a scam letter via an email address thomasduke4luv@yahoo.com.

According to the prosecuting counsel, the defendant has committed an offence contrary to Section 8(A) and punishable under Section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006.

The suspect who was arrested on April 4, 2008, during a special operation code-named, Operation Cyber Storm1 at Wave Network Net Cyber Café located along Pipeline Road, Tanke, Ilorin, Kwara State, used the false identity of Thomas Duke, a supposed gay from the United Kingdom with the email address given as thomasduke4luv@yahoo.com to send fraudulent mails with intent to defraud the unsuspecting victims.

In other instances, he also claimed to be one Muyiwa Akanbi, a Beninoise and Mary Jone.

In his confessional statement, Kingsley admitted that the email address: thomasduke4luv@yahoo.com belongs to him and that he is into the “business” to make money and pay his fees at the University of Ilorin, Kwara State where he was studying Geology and Mineral Sciences.

He also confessed that on February 12th, 2008, he sent an e-mail to Luis Barco, attaching a photograph of an unknown man which he downloaded from the internet and claimed to be a gay by the name Muyiwa Akanbi.

At another time, he mailed a message and presented himself to one Andrew Corrigan as a UK- born gay but based in Africa.

Another of his victim is Christopher De Troy of America, whom he hoodwinked into parting with $1,000 via Western Union when he presented himself as a gay from the Republic of Benin.

Mr Kingsley, who hails from Ndokwa East Local Government Area of Delta state, is to spend five years on each of the four count charges.

Other scammers

In another development, the EFCC has secured a conviction in the case involving Jacob Chinenye Isintume a.k.a. Prince Williams Mbeki who was charged to court on a three count of unlawful possession of documents of false pretence.

Justice L. Akanbi at the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, convicted and sentenced Mr Isintume to seven years imprisonment without an option of fine, on two out of the three counts preferred against him.

Mr Isintume was arrested on January 2nd, 2012, at Ocabik Planet Hotel, off Stadium Road , Port Harcourt, Rivers State, by officers of the Intelligence Detachment Headquarters, JTF Operation Restore Hope.

At the time of his arrest, he was in possession of a laptop computer with various forged documents stored in it, as well as a superimposed image of himself on pictures of the former United States President, George W. Bush and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.

Also, Justice Ibrahim Buba of the Federal High Court sitting in Asaba, Delta State convicted and sentenced Paul Omokaro and Johnson Obi to three years imprisonment on each of a two counts of conspiracy and illegal dealing in petroleum products.

They were however given an option of N180, 000 fines on each count.

The court also ordered that the truck and the product they were arrested with be forfeited to the Federal Government.

Omokaro and Obi were arrested at Bomadi Army check-point in Delta State in a Truck conveying three Gee Pee tanks and some jerry cans containing 6,000 litres of automotive gas oil.