EFCC Arraigns Suspected Visa Racketeer

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Ibadan zonal office on Monday, March 18, 2019, arraigned one suspected visa racketeer, Yomi Samson (aka Becky Wellington) before Hon. Justice Joyce Abdulmalik of the Federal High Court 2, Ibadan, Oyo State.

The suspect, and also known as Amanda Luccero, an alleged visa racketeer, was arraigned on a three-count charge bordering on possession of false documents, obtaining under false pretenses and misleading an officer of the EFCC.

One of the count charge against him reads: “That you Yomi Samson (a.k.a Becky Wellinghton, a.k.a Amanda Luccero), sometime in 2019, at Ibadan, within the jurisdiction of this Honorable Court, with intent to mislead, knowingly made false statement, wherein you lied to an officer of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission about your true age and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 39(2) (a) and punishable under Section 39 (2) (b) of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission Act, 2004”.

Another reads: “That you Yomi Samson (a.k.a Becky Wellinghton, a.k.a Amanda Luccero) sometime in 2019, at Ibadan, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, with intent to defraud, obtained a total sum of N45,000 (Forty-Five Thousand Naira) from one Chris when you falsely represented to him that the money was for Visa Clarifications, and other pretences, which representations you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1 (1) (a) and punishable under Section 1 (3) of the Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006”.

The defendant, however, pleaded not guilty to the three counts.

In view of his plea, the EFCC’s counsel, Sham sudden Bashir, applied for trial date and prayed the court to remand the defendant in prison custody.

However, counsel to the defendant, Kehinde Olawumi, told the court that his client has the intention of going into a plea bargain agreement with the prosecution and may not go into full trial.

After listening to both counsels, Justice Abdulmalik adjourned the case to March 25, 2019, for hearing of plea bargain and thereafter ordered that the defendant be remanded in prison pending the determination of his case.