Civil servant gets N500, 000 bail over alleged N1.9m USA Visa scam

An Ogudu Magistrates’ Court on Tuesday granted a 31-year-old civil servant, Rufus Okon, N500, 000 bail, after pleading not guilty to a case of alleged N1.9 million Visa scam.

The accused, who resides at Okera St., Ogba in Lagos, is facing a three-count charge of obtaining under false pretext, stealing and causing breach of peace.

The Prosecutor, Insp Lucky Ihiehie, told the court that the accused committed the offences between February and August in Alapere and Ketu areas of Lagos respectively.

He alleged that the accused falsely presented himself as a brother to a travel agent and collected N1.6 million from the first complainant- Abasiama Imeh on Feb. 2 with a promise to procure him a US Visa through his sister in the US.

“The accused also collected the sum of N360, 000 from a second complainant- Anita Edidiong in August for the same purpose of procuring her a US visa through the same sister.

“The accused failed to get the visas as promised but converted the money into his personal use and has been on the run since,’’ he told the court.

Ihiehie said the accused was arrested on Oct. 10 at Diamond Bank, Kosofe, Ketu.

The prosecutor alleged that the accused conducted himself in a manner likely to cause breach of peace by refusing to return the international passports belonging to the complainants.

Edidiong, a business woman, in her testimony, told the court that they met the accused in church and promised to help them get visa through the assistance of her sister who lived in the US.

Imeh, a fashion designer, told the court that his mother had to sell his father’s land to raise the said visa fee.

He said the offences contravened Sections 168(d), 287 and 314 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015 (Revised).

Our correspondent reports that while Section 287 prescribes 14 years imprisonment for stealing, Section 314 stipulates 15 years for obtaining money by false pretext for any offender when found guilty.

The Magistrate, Mrs E. Kubeinje, who granted the accused bail in the sum of N500,000 ordered him to produce two responsible sureties in like sum and adjourned the case until Dec. 19 for mention.