The Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, has convicted and sentenced seven internet fraudsters arrested during a sting operation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), Abeokuta, Ogun State.
The convicts, identified as Azeez Aliu Olalekan, Tijani Babatunde, David Damilola Ogunmuyiwa, Agada Prosper Osinakachukwu, Awwal Moshood, Amusa Wareez Oluwatobi, and Olujimi Damilola, were among ninety-three suspects apprehended on Sunday, August 10, 2025, during an EFCC raid at a hotel within the OOPL premises.
They were arraigned before Justice D.I. Dipeolu of the Federal High Court, Lagos, on Wednesday, August 20, 2025, on separate charges of impersonation, identity theft, and internet-related fraud. Each defendant pleaded guilty.
According to the EFCC, Olalekan fraudulently presented himself as Mary Latham, a United States citizen, through a Gmail account between 2020 and 2025, while Babatunde posed as Beth Lee, an American woman, on WhatsApp.
Ogunmuyiwa created a Facebook profile under the name Mountain Girls Sarah to deceive his victims, just as Osinakachukwu posed as Rachel Starr using a fake Facebook account.
Moshood impersonated Mary Moody on Facebook and collected payments in Australian dollars, while Oluwatobi pretended to be the British content creator Will Parfitt through an Instagram handle. Damilola presented himself as Karlee Grey, a white woman, on Facebook.
It noted that the charges were brought under Section 22 of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015. Prosecution counsels Pereagbe Ebareotu, Ayanfe Olowonihi, and S.M.
“Yabo tendered confessional statements, forensic reports, and mobile devices seized from the convicts. Restitution payments were also made in varying sums.
“Among the items forfeited to the Federal Government were high-end mobile phones, including iPhone 16 Pro Max, iPhone 13, iPhone 12 Pro Max, iPhone 12, iPhone 11, and Samsung S10e, along with bank drafts ranging from seventy thousand naira to four million naira”, it noted.
In her judgment, Dipeolu (Justice)
convicted the seven men and sentenced them to varying jail terms depending on the extent of their fraudulent activities.
Olalekan, who confessed to receiving $1,500, was sentenced to three months’ imprisonment with an option of a five-hundred-thousand-naira fine. Babatunde, who admitted benefitting between five and ten million naira, received three months’ imprisonment with an option of a one-million-naira fine.
Ogunmuyiwa, who obtained seventy thousand naira, was given one month imprisonment with an option of a two-hundred-thousand-naira fine, while Osinakachukwu was sentenced to three months imprisonment with an option of a two-hundred-thousand-naira fine.
Similarly, Moshood, who profited six hundred Australian dollars, received three months imprisonment with an option of a seven-hundred-and-fifty-thousand-naira fine, while Oluwatobi, who gained two hundred US dollars, was sentenced to three months imprisonment with an option of a three-hundred-thousand-naira fine.
Damilola, who confessed to receiving one hundred and fifty US dollars, was handed six months imprisonment with an option of a six-million-naira fine.
According to a statement by Dele Oyewale, Head, Media & Publicity, all the convicts were also ordered to forfeit their devices and restitution funds to the Federal Government.
The EFCC said the outcome of the case demonstrates its resolve to curb cybercrime and protect Nigeria’s digital space from criminal exploitation.
