Rev. Victor Mukoro V. Federal Republic Of Nigeria (2015)

LawGlobal-Hub Lead Judgment Report – COURT OF APPEAL

UGOCHUKWU ANTHONY OGAKWU, J.C.A.(Delivering the Leading Judgment)

This is an appeal against the judgment of the High Court of Delta State, Coram: T. O. Diai, Judge, delivered on 29th July 2009 in Charge No.A/40C/2007. In the said judgment the Lower Court convicted the Appellant on the one count charge on which he was tried and sentenced him to ten years imprisonment without option of fine.

The brief background facts as made out by the prosecution at the trial disclose that the Appellant represented to the PW1 that his (Appellant’s) younger brother who was married to an Italian assists people to secure visa to go to Italy where jobs and accommodation are provided for them. On account of this the PWI gave the Appellant the names of two relations who would be sent to Italy and further gave the Appellant the moneys he demanded for the purpose.

To cut the long story short, notwithstanding the moneys which the Appellant demanded and which were given to him, the Appellant failed to deliver on the representation which he made to the PW1. Subsequently, the Appellant represented to the PW1 that he had a sister in Spain who he had spoken to and who promised to help get a Spanish visa for somebody the PW1 brings.

The PW1 then requested that the Spanish visa be obtained for her son, the PW2. Once again the PW1 parted with moneys as demanded by the Appellant. The visa and travel documents to Spain were not obtained, rather spurious travel documents were produced by the Appellant, which the PW1 rejected. The PW1 was later called by the Appellant’s sister who resides in Spain and who dissociated herself from the actions of the Appellant.

The case made out by the Appellant is that the PW1’s husband asked him to help buy tickets for two persons travelling to New York and that he travelled to Lagos where he bought the tickets after the PW1’s husband had paid the money for the ticket into his account. The Appellant denied the version of the story narrated by the Prosecution, maintaining that he only assisted the PW1 and her husband to buy tickets.

The one count charge on which the Appellant was arraigned, tried and convicted reads:

“CHARGE

That you Rev. Victor Mukoro between the month of May and June 2007 in Asaba within the Judicial Division of State High Court Asaba, Delta State, by false pretence and with intent to defraud did obtain the sum of N4.5 Million from one Pastor, Mrs. R. O. Onovughakpor and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1 (1) (a) and punishable under Section 1 (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act No. 13 of 1995 as Amended.”

The Appellant being dissatisfied with the judgment of the Lower Court which is at pages 54 – 63 of the Records appealed against the said judgment. The Notice of Appeal is at pages 65 – 88 of the Records. The Records of Appeal having been complied and transmitted, the appeal was entered on 9th November, 2010. Thereafter the parties filed and exchanged briefs of argument. The Appellant’s Brief is dated 1st December, 2010 but filed on 21st December, 2010. The Respondent’s Brief is dated 14th October 2013 and filed on 18th October, 2013.

At the hearing of the appeal S. I. Dumbili, Esq., Learned counsel for the Appellant adopted and relied on the submissions in the Appellant’s Brief of Argument. He formally abandoned issue number 5 distilled in the said brief and he urged the court to allow the appeal. The said Issue number 5 having been abandoned is hereby struck out and would play no further part in the consideration and determination of this appeal.

Equally, the learned Counsel for the Respondent, Mrs. Chioma Onuegbu, Assistant Director of Public Prosecutions, Federal Ministry of Justice, adopted the submissions in the Respondent’s Brief of Argument and she urged the court to dismiss the appeal and affirm the judgment of the Lower Court.

Shorn of Issue number 5 which the Appellant abandoned there are a total of nine surviving issues distilled for determination in the Appellant’s brief as follows:

“1. Whether in view of the evidence wrongly admitted by the Trial Court’s Verdict of the 29th day of July, 2009; as well as the evidence wrongly excluded by the Trial Court from the Charge Number A/40C12007 thereto – there is sufficient lawful evidence to support the Verdict against the Appellant/Accused Person?