CYRIACUS IZUEKWE
A Magistrate Court sitting in the Ikeja Magisterial District of Lagos State has arraigned a 33-year-old man, Abdulafeez Ganiu, over alleged conspiracy and receiving money suspected to be stolen property amounting to Seventeen Million Naira.
The defendant was arraigned by the Lagos State Police Command on a two-count charge marked as Commissioner of Police WLK/B/105/26, with Charge No MIK/ /2026, filed against him and one other person who is currently at large.
The prosecution, led by SP Josephine Ihkayere, told the court that the alleged offences were committed between September 1, 2025 and August 4, 2026 at No. 3, Farouq Abawabo Drive, Isheri North GRA, OPIC Estate, Lagos State.
According to the charge sheet, Count One alleges that the defendant conspired with one other person to commit an act of stealing, an offence punishable under Section 411 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
Count Two alleges that the defendant received the total sum of Seventeen Million Naira, N17,000,000, from one Christiana Eno-Essein, knowing or having reason to believe that the money was stolen from one Bimbo Amedun, an offence punishable under Section 328 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
The charge was investigated at Isheri Police Station by Inspector Oluwadare Temitope and forwarded to the Directorate of Public Prosecutions for legal advice.
When the charges were read to him, the defendant pleaded not guilty to both counts.
Following his not guilty plea, the prosecutor, SP Josephine Ihkayere, did not oppose bail but urged the court to impose stringent conditions to ensure the defendant’s attendance at trial.
In his ruling, the presiding Magistrate, Mr. L.A. Owolabi, granted the defendant bail with two sureties who must show evidence of means of livelihood and evidence of tax payment. The court ordered that the defendant be remanded at the Correctional Center, Kirikiri Town, pending the perfection of his bail conditions.
The court further ordered that the case file be duplicated and forwarded to the Lagos State Ministry of Justice for legal advice, while adjourning the matter for further mention.
The defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty by a court of competent jurisdiction, as the charges remain mere allegations which the prosecution is expected to prove beyond reasonable doubt in accordance with the law. The Alleged offence attract several years of imprisonment under the criminal law of Lagos State if he was found guilty and convicted accordingly.
However, the defendant still remains in custody as the time of filing the report until he perfect his bail conditions.