The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned one Rufus John Isip, a self-acclaimed forex broker, for an alleged investment scam amounting to over N2 billion.
The suspect was arraigned before Justice C. S. Onah of the Federal High Court sitting in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State.
In a statement by the EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale on Saturday, the suspect was arraigned alongside his company, ITM-IT Resources Limited on an eight-count charge bordering on fraudulent conversion, money laundering and obtaining by false pretence.
According to the statement, “Count one of the charge reads: That you, Rufus John Isip while being the Director of ITM-IT Resources Limited and ITM-IT Resources Limited sometime in December 2020 and May 2021 in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of (431, 331, 172. 00) Four Hundred and Thirty-one Million, Three Hundred and Thirty-one Thousand, One Hundred and Seventy-two kobo from one Michael Okon, the Director of N-Rex Resources Limited under the false pretence that it is an investment in Vandera, an online investment platform, on his behalf, which pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1 (1) (a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006 and punishable under Section 1 (3) of the same Act.
“Count eight of the charge reads: That you, Rufus John Isip, while being the Director of ITM-IT Resources Limited and ITM-IT Resources Limited sometime between December 2020 and May 2021 in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, converted the total sum of (N730, 870, 000. 00) Seven Hundred and Thirty Million, Eight Hundred and Seventy Thousand Naira to cryptocurrency (Bitcoin) and transferred same into your Binance Wallet knowing that the said money formed part of your unlawful act and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 15 (2) (d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2011 and punishable under Section 15 (3) (4) of the same Act”.
The statement noted that the suspect pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to him and Khamis Mahmud, counsel to the EFCC, prayed the court to remand him in EFCC custody on the grounds of investigating him on other cases, adding that the defence counsel, Samson Ewuje did not pose any objection.
Justice Onah adjourned the matter to 14 October 2024 for trial and the defendant was remanded at the Uyo Zonal Directorate of the EFCC.
“Isip was arrested based on a petition from one Michael George, alleging that he lured him to invest in his online trading platform called Vandora.io.
“According to the petitioner, the defendant told him that it was more profitable to trade on his platform with a minimum trading capital of $100, 000. 00 (one hundred thousand dollars) and that he would earn more profit if he involved more investors.
“The petitioner thereafter invested, reached out to other investors and companies who also invested in the defendant’s phoney online trading platform and after 60 days (as agreed) for the investors to start earning their profits, the defendant disappeared into thin air”, the statement disclosed.
