Justice O.O. Abike-Fadipe of the Special Offences Court in Ikeja, Lagos, on Thursday, May 23, 2024, convicted and sentenced Idris Bakare to four years imprisonment for defrauding British Airways of N35.6 million.
Bakare was arraigned by the Lagos Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a four-count charge of stealing N35,672,845.00 (Thirty-Five Million, Six Hundred and Seventy-Two Thousand, Eight Hundred and Forty-Five Naira).
The offence is contrary to Section 280(2) and punishable under Section 287 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2015.
One of the counts reads: “Idris Bakare Adeyemi, Dauda Adegboyega, and Zuraai Gold Ventures, between 23rd October 2019 and 31st December 2019 in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, dishonestly converted to your use the total sum of N35,672,845.00 (Thirty-Five Million, Six Hundred and Seventy-Two Thousand, Eight Hundred and Forty-Five Naira) belonging to British Airways.”
Bakare pleaded guilty to the charges when they were read to him.
Following his guilty plea, prosecution counsel Z. I. Atiku called EFCC investigative officer Mojibola Adekunbi to review the facts.
Adekunbi explained that the Commission received a petition from British Airways on January 19, 2022, against Total Nigeria Plc and Asharam Energy. The petition alleged that Total Nigeria Plc, British Airways’ engineers, and Sahara Energy conspired to over-invoice aircraft Jet A1 fuel, leading to a loss of N363,780,248.53k. This fraudulent practice had reportedly been ongoing since 2018.
Investigation revealed that Bakare, a former contract staff of Total Plc and a fueller, conspired with others to sell Jet A1 fuel meant for British Airways to Dauda Sulaiman. This was confirmed through a series of transactions from Sulaiman to Bakare’s account, totaling N40,676,000.00 (Forty Million, Six Hundred and Seventy-Six Thousand Naira).
The prosecution counsel presented evidence including the petition from British Airways to the EFCC, Bakare’s statement, his Zenith Bank account statement, and a N4 million Access Bank cheque restituted during the investigation. Justice Abike-Fadipe admitted these as exhibits P1, P2, and P3 and convicted Bakare as charged.
When given the opportunity to address the court, Bakare pleaded for leniency, apologizing to British Airways, Total Plc, Nigerians, and his family, and promising not to engage in fraudulent activities again.
His lawyer, Olufemi Bisuga, also requested the court to temper justice with mercy.
The prosecution counsel requested the court to enforce Section 297 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law of Lagos State regarding restitution to victims.
Justice Abike-Fadipe sentenced Bakare to one year imprisonment for each of the four counts, with an option of a fine of N1 million per count. The sentences are to run concurrently. Bakare was also ordered to pay the balance of N36,676,000.00 over three years starting from July 2024, and the N4 million refunded is to be returned to British Airways.
Source: Instagram/EFCC
