A 37-year-old driver, Mohammed Hamza, was arraigned on Friday at a Gwagwalada Magistrates’ Court in Abuja for allegedly defrauding a client of N420,000. He faces charges of criminal breach of trust and cheating. Prosecutor Dabo Yakubu informed the court that the complainant, Veronica Akporokah, reported the case to the Gwagwalada Police Station in January.
Yakubu explained that Hamza committed the alleged offenses in December 2023. Akporokah had deposited the money into Hamza’s Standing IBTC bank account for the purchase of five and a half bags of beans, which were to be delivered to her in January. However, Hamza neither purchased the beans nor answered her calls. He used the money for personal gain and fled. He was eventually tracked down and arrested in Gwagwalada.
The charges against Hamza contravene Sections 312 and 322 of the Penal Code. He pleaded not guilty to the charges. Magistrate Olatunji Olaadunmoye granted him bail of N500,000 with a surety in a similar amount and adjourned the case until September 26 for further hearing.
