Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo of the Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos, has convicted and sentenced a Pastor, Ayodeji Ibrahim Oluokun, to two years in prison.
The convict is an Assistant Pastor of The Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), City of David Parish, Victoria Island, Lagos.
He was jailed on Tuesday, September 21.
Oluokun’s conviction came consequent on his arraignment by the Lagos Zonal Command of the EFCC, alongside his company, Peak Petroleum Industry Nigeria Limited, on an amended six-count charge bordering on issuance of dud cheques, stealing and obtaining by false pretence to the tune of $1.6 million on January 19, 2019.
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Justice Taiwo in her judgment held that the prosecution had successfully proved the charge of issuance of dud cheque against the defendants.
The judge, however, discharged and acquitted the defendants of stealing and obtaining money under false pretences.
According to the judge, the prosecutor failed to establish the charge of stealing and obtaining money under false pretences.
The judge thereafter sentenced Oluokun to two years imprisonment or pay a fine ofN2 million and his company to also pay a fine of N2 million.
She ordered the convict to make restitution of $1.6 million to the nominal complainant within 18 months.
Earlier before sentencing the convict, Oluokun, EFCC counsel, Mr Samuel Daji, urged the court to convict the defendants as charged, arguing that the convict and the nominal complainant had not been on talking term, thereby making the terms of restitution difficult to meet.
He also prayed to the court to order the defendant to forfeit his property in order to pay up the debt.
In a counter-reaction, defence counsel, Mr Edoka Onyeke, prayed to the court to grant the convict a non-custodial sentence, adding that he was a pastor and could use his pastoral work as service to humanity, through community service.