How My Father-In-Law Duped Me Of Three Cars, Millions Of Naira – Witness
Azeez Folorunso
A businessman, Mr Gafar Ademolake has narrated to a Lagos Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja how his 72-year-old father-in-law, Muritala Adebayo, (alias Oloriebi of Ajah) allegedly defrauded him of three cars and millions of naira paid to him directly and his representatives based on his instruction.
Ademolake, who was led in evidence by the counsel to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC), Mr Babangida Isah, told the court presided over by Justice Mojisola Dada that Adebayo, whom he met about eleven years ago, was his father-in-law.
The witness said the defendant called him on a particular day and said he should use proceeds from the business he was doing to give land to him.
According to the witness, he opened the transaction by giving the defendant Three Hundred Thousand Naira (N300,000.00) and Four Hundred Thousand Naira (N400,000.00) before he (the defendant) demanded One Million Naira (N1,000,000.00) which he paid to him.
He said: “The defendant is the father of my wife and I met him around eleven years ago and he said I should be using gains from the business I was doing to be getting land from him.
“I started with a sum of N300,000, N400,000 in several tranches and it got to a time when he said I should give him N1 million naira, which I did.
“He also gave me the account number of his personal Assistant, one Mr Goddy on this particular day and I told him I could only do a little transfer.
“I took N450,0000 to Baba’s office that day and I later asked him if he has other landed property.”.
The witness further told the court that the defendant told him he had land properties around Ayegbami and Eleko in Lagos and he promised to give him eighteen plots from there.
He said: “I told him that there was a need for us to seal our business deals so I paid N3.5 million for the first three plots of land at Ogombo in Ajah and he wrote receipts for the eighteen plots of land.
“I never knew that things were going wrong between us until he introduced me to one Mr. Akin.
“He called Mr Akin, who said they wanted to sell one estate behind Falling Rain Estate behind Brutish school and it was N7.5 million.
“I paid N1.5 million cash that day to Baba Muritala Adebayo. After that I paid another N1 million naira and the total amount I paid was N3.5 million.”
The witness further told the court that Mr Akin warned him against paying money to the defendant as he was deducting ridiculous commissions from the payments.
He said that the defendant vehemently denied collecting any commission, stressing that though he secured the land he discovered after two years of securing the land that the landed property had been taken over by another estate developer.
The witness told the court that upon discovery of encroachment on his property, he lodged a complaint to the defendant and the defendant asked him to call Mr Goddy who calmed him down with a promise to give him another landed property.
He also told the court that the defendant thereafter made a promise to be paying him N500,000 for seven months.
He further said that he paid N4.5 million before he stopped further payment, stressing that he has taken the defendant to several places for the recovery of the 18 plots of land but to no avail.
During cross-examination by the defence counsel, Mr Bamidele Ogundele on documents to authenticate his testimony as there were no documents or receipts tendered before the court by EFCC, the witness said he had all the receipts of all payments made by him.
“I have all my documents and receipts including receipts of the three cars here in my bag,” the witness affirmed.
An attempt by the prosecution counsel to tender the available receipts through the witness during cross-examination was promptly declined by the court.
EFCC had on 24 January 2024 arraigned the defendant on a three-count charge bordering on obtaining money by false pretext
He pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The EFCC had alleged that the defendant, with an intent to defraud, obtained the sum of N4.5 million from Mr Gafar Ademolake by falsely informing him that the payment was for three plots of land at Ogombo, Ajah in Lagos, a presentation he knew to be false.
The prosecutor submitted that the defendant also collected the sum of N5.5 million from the complainant as part of the payment for 18 plots of land in Ayogbemi Village in Ibeju-Lekki, which he knew to be false.
The Commission further alleged that the defendant collected two Toyota Camry 2005 model cars and one Honda Accord 2006 model, valued at N9 million from the complainant, that the payment was for the balance of the 18 plots of land in Ibeju, a presentation he knew to be false.
According to the prosecutor, the alleged offences contravene Section 1(3) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.
Justice Mojisola Dada adjourned the case till 14 May for continuation of trial.
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