A microfinance bank staff, Williams Jonah, on Wednesday appeared in a Chief Magistrates’ Court in Gwagwalada, FCT, for allegedly cheating a businessman of N300,000.

The police charged Jonah with criminal breach of trust, misappropriation and cheating.

The Prosecution Counsel, Dapo Yakubu, told the court that Jonah, a staff of Ace Microfinance Bank, Kwali, Abuja fraudulently converted the sum of N300,000 given to him by a customer.

He alleged that the defendant collected the money from Garba Bello, a resident of Pai village, Kwali Abuja with the promise of depositing it in a fixed deposit account.

Instead of depositing the money in Bello’s fixed deposit account as agreed, he said that the defendant, fraudulently converted the money for his own use,” he said.

He said that N90,000 was recovered from the defendant in the course of police investigation.

The offence, he said, contravened the provisions sections 312, 309 and 322 of the Penal Code.

The defendant pleaded not guilty to the offence.

In his submission, the Defense Counsel, E.K.Etsu prayed the court to admit his client to bail, saying that he was by law presumed innocent until otherwise proven.

He argued that his client reserved the right to be admitted to bail as contained in sections 36 (5) of the 1999 and section 162 of Administration of Criminal Justice Act.

In his ruling, Chief Magistrate Aliyu Shafa admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N100, 000 with one reasonable surety who must reside within the court’s jurisdiction.

Shafa adjourned the case until Feb. 2, for hearing.

 

NAN