By Israel Bulus, Kaduna
A woman, identified as Lovelyn Samuel, has dragged a Kaduna Pastor before the Chief Magistrate Court II in Kaduna State over N15 million land fraud.
The Pastor, who is the Pastor in charge of Neighborhood For Christ Church, Kaduna, Emmanuel Bobai was brought before His Worship, Aliyu Dogara of the Chief Magistrate Court II Ibrahim Taiwo Road on a 3-count charges of criminal breach of trust, defamation, and Cheating for allegedly obtaining N15 Million under false pretense.
Counsel to the complainant, Bar. Henry Ubimba while speaking to newsmen Thursday, said the matter was earlier fixed for hearing on Wednesday at 9:am but was later adjourned to 2:pm. When the Judge came in and they entered into session, surprisingly, counsel to the defendants disappeared.
” I thought it could be a call of nature, but when the matter was in session different lawyer stood in for the matter, but I refused that he was not the counsel to the defendant.
” So, we followed the normal procedure and the judge said he had just been briefed to hold and adjourned the matter to Thursday 21st March 2024.
” Today, being Thursday, All the counsel were in court today but the matter could not hold, the Judge had again adjourned the matter to 22/April 2024.
Commenting on the matter, Barrister Ubimba alleged that, Pastor Emmanuel Bobai stopped picking up his client’s calls and messages after N15 million was transferred to his account on July 6th, 2022.
According to him, justice must prevail and if the defendant is found guilty by the court, he will be convicted and be prosecuted to serve as a deterrent to others who hide under the guise of pastors to defraud innocent Nigerians.
” He showed fake documents that were edited and photocopied at a business Centre showing the parcels of the land.
” He told my client in confidence that he has the connection to get land allocation for her in Abuja. After some time, he called and said he had made his contact and was ready, my client asked what was the first step, and he said the first step was to link her file to the Land information system which would cost N15 million.
” My client told him, she is not ready to send any money on land issues until the job is been done and verified but he assured her that he’s not releasing the money to them but show them a prove of payment that the money was already in his account. My client released the money for him on the 6th of July, 2022 and he acknowledged the receipt of the money through a WhatsApp chat.
” After a week he started dropping messages on WhatsApp that the job was done, my client asked him to hold on because she noticed a mistake in one of the plot numbers on the document he forwarded, she cycled it and sent it back to him to show the people, noting since then he stopped picking my client’s calls again.
” When my client made her investigation and got the original documents AGIS in Abuja, that was when she discovered that all the information he was sending to her was edited in a Business Centre. Since August 28, 2022, he has not been picking up calls. My client contacted me and that was why we’re in court today.
The matter has been adjourned to 22/April 2024.
Efforts to get Counsel to the defendant to comment on the matter proved abortive.
