EFCC charges woman, daughter-in-law over N6m land fraud

The Port Harcourt Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has charged one Blessing Nchelem and her daughter-in-law, Deborah Jack, to the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt, Rivers State for multiple fraud.

The Nchelem and Jack were arraigned on four-count charges, bordering on criminal conspiracy, obtaining money under false pretence, and retention of proceeds of an unlawful act to the tune of N6 million.

“That you, Deborah Jack, Blessing Webilor Nchelem, Chimenem Peter Webilor (now at large) between 15th November 2022 to 21st March 2023 at Port Harcourt within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, with intent to defraud did obtain in a single transaction, the sum of Six Million Naira (N6,000,000,00) only from Senibo Richmond Opusunju as consideration for the sale of three plots of land, located at Rumuapu, Rukpokwo Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State, a pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1 (1)(a) and punishable under Section 1 (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act,” Count two of the charge read.

The duo also pleaded ‘not guilty’ to the charges when they were read to them, following which prosecution counsel E. K. Esien-Otu, prayed the court to fix a date for the commencement of trial and for the defendants to be remanded in the custody of Nigeria Correctional Service (NCS), while S. O. Aburu, the defence counsel, orally applied to the court to grant the defendants bail to enable them to prepare for their trial.

Justice Ajoku who rejected the oral bail application, asked the defence counsel to make a formal bail application and ordered the defendants to be remanded in the anti-graft custody.

Ajoku said in the EFCC statement, “The defendants were arrested when a petitioner alleged that in October 2022, he was introduced by his son to one of the defendants Peter Webilor, who claimed to be a property agent and had two plots of land for sale, located at Rumuapu and Rukpokwu, Obi/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State for which he later paid a total sum of N6 million into the bank account of one of the defendants, Deborah Jack.

“The petitioner, however, soon found out after payment that he could not take possession of the properties, as a different person materialized and claimed genuine ownership of the properties. Since then, all efforts made by the petitioner to recover his money met a brick wall.”