A Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja has sentenced a man, Abdulrahman Lawal Raji, to 15 years imprisonment for defrauding a buyer of N26 million under the guise of supplying a Toyota Hilux vehicle.

Justice Ismail Ijelu delivered the judgment on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, after finding Raji guilty of obtaining money by false pretence.

A statement by EFCC said the convict was arraigned by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on November 9, 2023, on an amended two-count charge.

According to the anti-graft agency, Raji collected N26 million from a petitioner, Olaide Ibidapo, for the purchase of a 2022 Toyota Hilux but failed to deliver the vehicle or refund the money.

One of the charges against him read:

“ABDULRAHMAN LAWAL RAJI and ABDULRAHMAN LAWAL (at large), between 20th March, 2023 and 21 March, 2023 at Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, with intent to defraud, obtained a gross sum of N26,000,000 from Olaide Ibidapo by falsely representing it was the purchase price for a Toyota Hilux 2022 car, which representation you knew to be false”.

Raji pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to him.

During the trial, prosecution counsel, Ebuka Okongwu, presented four witnesses and tendered several documents which were admitted as exhibits by the court.

The defence, however, called two witnesses in its case.

Delivering judgment, Justice Ijelu held that the prosecution had successfully established its case beyond reasonable doubt and consequently found the defendant guilty as charged.

The court sentenced Raji to 10 years imprisonment on count one and five years imprisonment on count two, without the option of a fine on either count.

The judge ordered that both sentences should run concurrently.

Justice Ijelu also directed the convict to restitute the sum of N26 million to the petitioner.

Raji’s conviction started from his failure to fulfil an agreement to supply a 2022 Toyota Hilux vehicle after receiving payment from the buyer. Investigations revealed that he neither delivered the vehicle nor returned the money paid for the transaction.

Oyo State Police Command has revealed that it has arrested no fewer than three suspects in connection with various criminal activities in the state.

The Public Relations Officer of the command, Olayinka Ayanlade, made this known in a statement.

The statement was made available to DAILY POST on Tuesday.

Ayanlade explained that the command also recovered some items as exhibits.

He said the command recovered items such as firearms and vandalised cables from the suspects.

Ayanlade noted that the suspects were arrested in Oyo town following a report received by police officers at Durbar Division.

The suspects, according to Ayanlade, are Suhaib Abdulwahab, Kabiril Mustapha, and Abdullah Abdullah.

Ayanlade added that the suspects are currently in police custody.

He said: “Acting on the information, police operatives from Durbar Division promptly proceeded to the location, where the owner of the scrap shop, one Suhaib Abdulwahab, aged 30, of Akunlemu Area, Oyo, was arrested.

“Further investigation and the arrest of the scrap shop owner led to the apprehension of two additional suspects identified as Kabiril Mustapha and Abdullah Abdullah, aged 25, both of Akunlemu Area, Oyo, who are believed to be connected to the crimes.”

The Sokoto State Police Command says it has recorded major successes in its fight against drug trafficking and banditry, arresting a suspected drug dealer, seizing a large quantity of illicit drugs, and recovering animals stolen by bandits.

Police spokesperson, DSP Ahmad Rufai, said officers from the Bado Division stopped two men riding an unregistered motorcycle along the Kebbi–Sokoto Road on May 27.

The suspects, identified as Ummaru Abubakar Gugare and another man known simply as Ummaru, were searched during a routine operation.

According to the police, officers found a sack containing substances suspected to be cannabis, as well as several containers filled with controlled drugs, including Axzol, Benthexol and D5 tablets.

Gugare was arrested at the scene, while the second suspect escaped. Police said efforts are ongoing to track him down.

In a separate operation on May 30, the command’s Anti-Kidnapping Unit responded to reports of an attack by armed bandits on Zabori, Tambaranga and Gidan Yero communities in Wamakko Local Government Area.

The security operatives reportedly blocked the attackers’ escape route near Abdalo Forest in Gwadabawa Local Government Area, leading to a gunfight. Police said the bandits fled into the forest after being overpowered, with some believed to have sustained gunshot wounds.

One suspect, Musa Usman from Damba Village in Illela Local Government Area, was arrested during the operation.

The police also recovered 11 cows and five sheep believed to have been stolen by the criminals. The animals are being kept until they can be returned to their owners.

Reacting to the operations, Sokoto State Commissioner of Police, Hayatu Hassan Shaffa, described the achievements as “significant blows to criminal cartels operating in our state, whether drug barons or armed bandits.”

He urged residents to continue supporting security agencies with useful information, saying, “together, we will dismantle every criminal network threatening our peace and security.”

The police said investigations are ongoing and efforts have been intensified to arrest other suspects who escaped during the operations.