I Called Myself To Bar In 2019 – Fake Lawyer Tells Court

CYRIACUS IZUEKWE

A 47-year old fake Lawyer, Tajudeen Olufemi Idris, arrested in Court in Ogun State, has told the Court that he called himself to the Nigerian Bar in 2019 and started practicing a lawyer.

 P.M.EXPRESS reports that the suspect, Olufemi, was on Friday arrested by Police operatives in Ogun State for allegedly parading himself as a legal practitioner knowing fully that he was not and still went to Court to defend a client before he was caught.

The Ogun State Police Spokesperson, Abimbola Oyeyemi, confirmed that the suspect was arrested at Magistrates Court 6 Ifo while appearing before Chief Magistrate I.A. Arogundade in a civil trial between one Ifeanyi Chuckwu and Ayo Itori.

During the Court session, the suspect was said to have claimed to be a legal counsel from Tajudeen O. Idris & Co Chamber, representing one of the parties.

His conduct and presentation before the Chief magistrate raised suspicious about his qualification as a lawyer and this prompted the Chief Magistrate to ask him of the year he was called to the bar, which he claimed to be 2009.

But further enquiry revealed that his name is nowhere to be found amongst those called to bar in 2009, hence, Police were notified.

Consequently, the DPO of Ifo Police Division, CSP Adeniyi Adekunle, detailed his operatives to the scene where the suspect was apprehended.

From what Olufemi confessed, he had practiced as a fake lawyer for 11 years without traces that he was fake and had defeated many genuine lawyers during trial in various Courts before he was recently caught.

Meanwhile, the Commissioner of Police, Edward Ajogun, has expressed concern over the increase in the rising number of fake lawyers swindling people of their hard earned money.

CP Ajogun recalled that not less than five cases of fake lawyers have been reported since his assumption of office in less than two months ago.