Justice Mohammed Tukur of the Kaduna State High Court has sentenced Ugwu Ejike Frank to jail for issuance of dud cheque.
The Justice made the verdict yesterday, Thursday, April 4, 2019.
The business man had issued a Guarantee Trust Bank cheques of Three Million, Four Hundred And Seventy (N3,470,000) in favour of Miagro Limited to pay off his debts. Unfortunately, it was discovered that he has no such amount in his bank account, and all efforts to reach him proved abortive.
Miagro Limited approached the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and they took it up from there.
One of the count reads: “That you Ugwu Ejike Frank, sometime in April, 2018 in Kaduna within the judicial division of this honourable court did cheat Miagro Limited by dishonestly inducing it to deliver to you Agro Chemicals via a Guarantee Trust Bank cheque when you knew there was no money in the said account and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 306(a) and punishable under Section 307 of the Penal Code Law Kaduna State 2017”.
However, Ejike pleaded guilty to an amended charge preferred against him by the EFCC, based on a plea bargain agreement dated April 3, 2019.
Defence Counsel, Nicholas Oche, pleaded with the court to temper justice with mercy as Ejike was a first time offender.
And so, Justice Tukur decided to sentence him to two years imprisonment with an option of N100, 000 on count one and a fine of N50,000 on count two.
The judge also instruct Ejike to pay the balance of N1,970,000 (One Million, Nine Hundred and Seventy Thousands Naira) as restitution to the victim on or before August 31, 2019.
