A 33-year-old travel agent, Daniel Akpan, was on Wednesday brought before a Yaba Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos State for allegedly swindling a banker of N1.1 million.
Akpan collected the money on the pretext of obtaining a Montenegro visa and flight ticket for the complainant, Mr Micheal Oguocha.
Akpan who resides in Igando area of Lagos, is being tried on a two-count charge of conspiracy to defraud and issuance of dud cheque.
He was said to have collected the N1.1 million from the banker in one of the commercial banks in Yaba area of Lagos.
Police Prosecutor, ASP Roman Unuigbe, told the court that the accused committed the offence sometime between March 2017 and January 2018 at Igando area of Lagos.
Unuigbe said that the accused fraudulently obtained the N1.1 million on the pretext of obtaining a Montenegro visa and flight ticket for the complainant but went ahead to issue him fake visa and ticket.
“When the complainant discovered that the ticket and visa were fake, he confronted the accused who promised to refund the money to him.
“In the course of the transaction, the accused issued five Stanbic IBTC cheques with No. 18258065, 18250861, 18258062, 18258063 and 18258065 to the complainant for the refund.
“When the complainant got to the bank, he discovered that the cheques were all dud cheques,’’ he said.
The offences contravene Sections 321 and 411 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015 (Revised).
The accused, however, pleaded not guilty to the offences.
Chief Magistrate Peter Ojo, admitted the accused to bail in the sum of N500,000 with two sureties in like sum.
Ojo said that the sureties must be gainfully employed with an evidence of three years’ tax payment to the Lagos State Government.
He adjourned the case until Dec. 21 for trial. (NAN)
