Final-Year Student Sentenced to 14 Years

Henry Nathaniel Ekanem, a final-year student at the University of Port Harcourt in Rivers State, has been sentenced to 14 years in prison for internet fraud. The conviction was handed down by Justice A.T. Mohammed of the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt on Wednesday, following Ekanem’s arraignment by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on seven counts of impersonation and obtaining money by false pretenses.

The charges stem from Ekanem’s fraudulent activities, which included posing as Coran Capsha, manager for singer Chris Stapleton, to defraud one Diana Roskov of $22. This deception, along with others, led to his arrest by EFCC operatives in September 2024 in Choba, Port Harcourt.

One of the charges reads: *”That you, Henry Nathaniel Ekanem, on or about September 17, 2024, at Choba in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, within the jurisdiction of this honorable court, with intent to defraud, did obtain the sum of $22 from Diana Roskov by fraudulently representing yourself as Coran Capsha, manager of the singer Chris Stapleton, a pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1)(a) and punishable under Section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud-Related Offences Act, 2006.”*

Ekanem pleaded guilty to the charges. In response, prosecution counsel A. Abubakar presented evidence and witnesses to support the case, which the court admitted as exhibits. The defense counsel, T. Fred-Boufini, appealed for leniency, emphasizing that Ekanem was a first-time offender.

Justice Mohammed sentenced Ekanem to two years imprisonment for each of the seven counts, with an option of a N200,000 fine for each count, payable to the Consolidated Revenue Account of the Federal Government of Nigeria. The judge also ordered that all devices recovered from Ekanem, deemed proceeds of crime, be forfeited to the government, and that Ekanem file an affidavit of good behavior before the court.

EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, stated that Ekanem conducted his fraudulent activities through WhatsApp and Instagram, impersonating a manager in the entertainment industry to deceive unsuspecting victims.