A 74-year-old Emmanuel Evbota who serves as a distributor with the Berger Paint Nigeria Plc, at Oba Akran Avenue, Ikeja, Lagos, has been arraigned before a Lagos Magistrate Court for allegedly converting proceeds of paint products for personal use.
According to the police, the accused, Evbota 74, was arrested on the order of the Assistant Inspector General of Police, in charge of Zone 2 Command, Onikan, Lagos following a petition by the management of Berger Paint Plc that the accused allegedly siphoned proceeds from paint products sales summing up to N22,650,000 to his personal account.
The accused has therefore been arraigned before an Igbosere Magistrate Court on a three-count charge of stealing N22,650,000, felony to wit, and issuance of GTBank dud cheque.
The Counsel to the Police, Friday Mameh brought the court’s attention to charge No A/65/2017 that the accused committed the offence between January and December, 2009 at Berger Paint,Lagos.
Mameh in his argument, explained to the Court that the accused leveraged on his position as a distributor with Berger paints to defraud the company by collecting various paint products estimated at N22,650,000 from the complainant with the pretext to sell and remit the proceeds to the complainant, but instead he sold the paints and converted the money to his personal use.
On the charge of issuing a dud cheque, Police counsel Mameh also said that the accused issued a GTBank cheque No 18602108 valued at N22,650,000 to the complainant with the pretext of paying back the money, but that when the cheque was presented at the bank for payment, it was dishonoured due to insufficient funds in the account.
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Mameh added that the offence the accused committed was punishable, standing on the constitutional provisions under sections 314 (1a), 287(7) of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State, 2015 and section 1 (b)(1) of the dishonoured cheque offence Act. Cap.102 Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1999 as amended.
However, the accused, pleaded not guilty to the crime.
Chief Magistrate, A.O Komolafe then admitted him to bail in the sum of N5m with two sureties in like sum.
The case was adjourned till December 7, 2017 for further mention.
Meanwhile the defendant was ordered by the magistrate to be remanded in the Ikoyi Prison, until his bail condition is met.
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