By Isaac Daniel
A WhatsApp hacker, Stephen Andrew Ojo, who defrauded his victim of the sum of N700, 000, 00, has been convicted and sentenced to a total of 32 months imprisonment, by Justice Akintayo Aluko of a Lagos Federal High Court.
Justice Aluko convicted and sentenced the hacker to the jail-term after he changed his earlier not guilty plea, when the matter came up for hearing on Friday.
The convicted hacker was earlier arraigned before the court by the operatives of Zone 2 Command, of the Nigeria police, Onikan, Lagos, sometimes in December, 2023.
He was arraigned before the court on a four count-charge of conspiracy, identity theft, obtaining the sum of N700, 000, by false pretence and money laundering.
The convict, during his arraignment on the charges by the prosecutor, Barrister Zebedee Arekhandia, a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), had denied the allegations and pleaded not guilty to the charges.
But at the hearing of the charges on May 7, 2024, the convict changed his earlier plea of not guilty, and pleaded guilty to the four counts charge.
Consequently, Justice Aluko adjourned the matter for review of facts and sentence.
In reviewing the facts of the case, the prosecutor, Barrister Arekhandia, called the Investigation Police Officer (IPO) Inspector Austin Egho, who investigated the matter.
Upon the conclusion of the review of the facts of the matter by the prosecution witness, who also tendered some documentary exhibits, which were admitted by the court, the prosecutor urged the court to sentence the convict as charged, based on his guilty plea, prosecution witness and exhibits tendered before the court.
Consequently, Justice Aluko sentenced the convict to eight months in each of the four counts.
The judge however ordered that the jail-term shall run concurrently, and that the convict’s jail-term will start running from the date he was arrested and detained by the Police in December 20, 2023.
The convict, according to the police, on September 12, 2024, at ajao Estate, Lagos, conspired others now at large and engaged in identity theft, by hacking the WhatsApp of one Mrs. Laraba Shuaibu, and impersonated her.
The prosecutor had told the court that the convict and others now at large, used the hacked WhatsApp to fraudulently obtained the sum of N700, 000, from one Mrs. Osasu Tina Eriamiatoe.
He further informed the court that the money was paid into the defendant’s Union Bank account and PalmPay account number 9550723433 belonging to one Michael Ijua.
He told the court that the offences committed by the convict are contrary to sections 8(a) and 1(3)(a) and punishable under Section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.
He also the court that the offences contravened sections Section 24 (2)(a)(b) (i)(ii) and (iii) of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015. And Section 15 (1) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2022 as amended in 2012.
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