A 39-year-old man, Ewombe Lumiere, has been remanded in a correctional facility by a Benin High Court following allegations of a N10 million fraud case, the court ruled on Thursday.
According to prosecutor Polycarp Odion, Lumiere faces a one-count charge of fraud committed on March 13, 2025, in Benin City, within the Benin Criminal Division.
The prosecution alleged that the defendant, under false pretenses of importing goods to Nigeria from China, fraudulently obtained N10 million from one Ofure Okhiria.
Odion informed the court that the offences contravened Section 1(1)(a) and were punishable under Section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2004.
In a motion exparte citing relevant sections, the prosecutor urged the court to remand the defendant in a correctional centre for an initial period of 14 days pending legal advice from the office of the Director of Public Prosecution in the state.
The presiding Judge, Justice Ogbevoen, granted the prosecution's request and ordered Lumiere's remand in the correctional facility.
The case has been adjourned until June 4, 2025, for hearing.
