Employee in court for allegedly swindling customers of N3.6m

A 42-year-old sales representative, Juliet Olakpa, on Monday, appeared before an Ogudu Magistrates’ Court in Lagos, for allegedly defrauding some company’s distributors, to the tune of N3.6 million.

Olakpa, who resides at Silver Crescent, in the Surulere area of Lagos, is facing a two-count charge of obtaining money by false pretences and stealing.

She, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.

The prosecutor, Insp. Sunday Bassey, told the court that the defendant committed the offences between January and April, at Goonite Hygiene Nig Ltd, located at Ogudu Road, Ojota.

He alleged that the Human Resource Assistant to the compamy, reported that the defendant, one of their sales managers, did business with the company’s distributors and wholesalers, and collected a total sum of N3.62 million.

Bassey alleged that the defendant obtained the sum of N997,000 from a distributor named Don Baroni, under a false pretence of remitting same to the company.

She was said to have also obtained the sum of N929,000 from one Dettipeles distributors, and the sum of N477,000 from one Murphy King distributor.

The defendant also allegedly obtained the sum of 677,000 from one Ngozi at Arena, and the sum of N539,000 from one Uchenna a wholesaler at Yaba, all under false pretences

The prosecutor, alleged that she converted the money to her personal use and failed to remit same to the company.

The offences contravenes the provisions of sections 287 and 314 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

The Magistrate, Mrs O.A Daodu, granted the defendant bail in the sum of N l200,000 with two responsible sureties in like sum.

She, adjourned the case until Sept. 23, for trial.

It was reported that section 314 attracts a penalty of 15 years imprisonment, for the offence of obtaining under false pretence.