EFCC arraigns man for allegedly stealing from Estate of deceased police officer

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Kaduna Zonal office has arraigned one Matthew Adamu before Justice M. T. M Aliyu of the Kaduna State High Court, Kaduna on a one count charge bordering on obtaining by false pretence.

The charge reads: “that you Mathew Adamu ‘M’ sometime in December 2018 within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of N830,845.96 from the estate of late Inspector Jerry Yohanna Irimiya when you portrayed one Japheth Jerry as the rightful next of kin to the deceased Inspector Jerry Yohanna Irimiya which pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act”.

The defendant pleaded ‘not guilty’ to the charge when it was read to him.

Consequently, the prosecution counsel, P.C Onyeneho asked for a date for commencement of trial, while the defence counsel, Olugbenga Ogunniran moved an application for bail.

The judge granted bail to the defendant in the sum of N1million with a surety in like sum. The surety must be, either a blood relation with landed property covered by Certificate of Occupancy or a civil servant not below Grade Level 10.

The case has been adjourned till September 30, 2021 for trial.

Trouble started for the defendant when the Commission received a petition from one Juliana Jerry alleging that sometime in 2017, after the death of her husband, the family seized his phone and ATM debit card and conspired with one Japheth Jerry and withdrew the sum of N830, 000 being the life savings of her late husband and all efforts to recover the money proved abortive.

Matthew, who said to be a cousin of his deceased claimed the family, at a meeting, handed all documents belonging to the deceased (police officer) to him to help process the payment of money in his bank account.

However, investigation reveals that the defendant lured one Japheth Jerry, son of the deceased, to sign an affidavit, changing the next-of-kin on the deceased bank account for which he received a token from the money withdrawn, while the defendant converted the remaining for personal use.