Rédaction Africa Links 24 with Nsikak Nseyen
Published on 2024-02-01 17:42:34
Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, handed down a six-month prison sentence to Oluwadarasimi Omoseyin, an actress, on February 1, 2024, for spraying and stepping on new naira notes at a social event in Lagos State. Omoseyin had initially entered a plea of “not guilty” to the two-count charges brought against her by the Lagos Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on February 13, 2023. However, she was later granted bail on February 15, 2023.
One of the charges read: “That you, Oluwadarasimi Omoseyin, on the 28th day of January 2023, at Monarch Event Centre, Lekki, Lagos, tampered with the sum of N100,000 issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria by spraying it during a social occasion, thereby committing an offense contrary to Section 21(1) of the Central Bank Act, 2007.”
During the subsequent hearing, Omoseyin changed her plea to “guilty” in light of the overwhelming evidence against her. The prosecution counsel called a witness to review the facts of the matter, including the defendant’s arrest, her statement, and the video evidence showing her spraying money at the event.
The prosecution counsel also sought to present additional evidence, including a letter from the ICPC, the defendant’s extra-judicial statement, a forensic report of her phone, video footage of her spraying the money, and a statement from the event center’s representative. Justice Aneke admitted these as exhibits and subsequently convicted the defendant as charged.
In her defense, the defendant’s counsel pleaded for leniency, emphasizing that she was a first-time offender, a mother of one, and expressed remorse. The defense counsel further requested a non-custodial sentence for the convict.
However, Justice Aneke sentenced the defendant to six months in prison, effective immediately, with the option to pay a N300,000 fine into the consolidated revenue account of the federation.
Omseyin’s arrest came after a video of her spraying and stepping on the newly redesigned naira notes at a party went viral. In the video, she was also seen displaying large sums of money. In her statement to the commission, she claimed to have received the new naira notes from her fans at the party and stated that she did not know the person who gave her the money.
Items recovered from her at the time of her arrest included a Range Rover.
The conviction and sentencing of Oluwadarasimi Omoseyin serves as a reminder that defacing or tampering with national currency is a criminal offense and carries serious consequences. It also underscores the importance of compliance with financial regulations and laws to avoid legal repercussions.
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