- The judge granted the request by counsel to Ochuko for her bail, but because of the stringent condition, the nursing mother was remanded in prison custody
- Ochuko was said to have committed the alleged love scam with an accomplice who is currently on the run
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned one Suzan Vega Ochuko before Justice PI Ajoku of the Federal High Court sitting in Benin, Edo state on a three-count charge bordering on conspiracy and obtaining money by false pretence.
The court ordered that she be remanded until she meets the bail condition
The EFCC alleged that Ochuko and one Tony Uyimwen aka Alex Ethan (now at large) allegedly operated with a pseudo name to carry out their crime.
According to the anti-graft agency, Alex Ethan contacted one Mrs Beatrice AUF DER MAUR from St Gallen, Switzerland via Facebook and defrauded her of 132,000 Euro.
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Mrs Auf Der Maur was allegedly hoodwinked into a love relationship with the defendant who subsequently defrauded her of the said amount under the pretence of executing a non-existing contract.
The accused pleaded not guilty to the charge when she was arraigned on Friday, April 7, 2017.
In view of her plea, NAIJ.com learnt that the prosecution counsel, MT Iko, asked the court to fix a date for commencement of trial.
The defence counsel, Ekhator Ogiegbaen, told the court that he had filed a bail application for his client. He pleaded with the court to grant his client bail as she will not jump bail and that the defendant was a nursing mother.
Though the prosecution counsel opposed the bail, Justice Ajoku granted the defendant bail in the sum of N1 million with two sureties in like sum.
The sureties, according to the court, must be civil servants not below grade level 12 or two sureties with landed property within the jurisdiction of the court.
The court said the sureties must deposit original titles of their document with the court while the civil servant must produce an official letter from his superior from his office. The documents are to be verified by the prosecution.
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The matter was adjourned to the 14th of June, 2017 for trial while the defendant is to be remanded in prison custody pending the perfection of her bail.
Meanwhile, watch the arraignment of Andrew Yakubu, a former group managing director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), after $9.8 million was found in his home:
