22nd May, 2020
By Akin Kuponiyi
A Lagos High Court, sitting at Igbosere, Lagos, Southwest Nigeria, has fixed July 28, 2020 for the arraignment of Oyo State council official, Badmus Adesina and a lawyer, Ibukunoluwa Konu, alleged to have stolen N167,886,591,60 from a dead man.
The presiding Judge, Justice O. Ogunjobi fixed the date due to the absence of first defendant Badmus Adesina, who resides in Ibadan.
Only Ibukunoluwa Konu was present in court.
The adjournment was also in keeping with the COVID-19 regulations of the Lagos State Judiciary.
Adesina’s counsel, Mr O. Agboola, told the court that his client was unable to attend the court because of the national ban on inter-state travel as a measure to check the spread of the novel coronavirus pandemic.
According to the four-count charge dated 24th January, 2020 filed by the police, Badmus Adesina, 59, and Ibukunoluwa Konu, 44, conspired together to commit the offences of stealing, forgery and making documents without authority between 2009 and 2019.
The Prosecuting counsel, Williams Tijani of the Force Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department (FCIID) Alagbon, Ikoyi, alleged that the defendants stole N167,886,591,60 from the Estate of the late Godfrey Kwashie Konu.
Tijani stated further that within the same period between Ibadan and Lagos, both defendants “did forge a letter of attestation of marriage certificate purportedly issued from Ibadan South East Local Government of Oyo State and a letter captioned ‘Marriage Certificate’ issued from a Magistrate Court in Ibadan.
The prosecutor alleged further that both men, “with intent to defraud, without lawful authority or excuse make,” signed or executed the forged letter of attestation of Marriage Certificate.
The offences alleged to have been committed by the defendants are contrary to and punishable under Sections 280, 287, 363, 365, 370 and 411 of the Criminal code Law of Lagos State, 2015.