Justice Hakeem Oshodi of an Ikeja High Court has remanded a lawyer, Chinwe Onuoha, in the custody of Nigerian Correctional Services (NCoS) over alleged forgery.
Onuoha would remain in the custody of the female section of NCoS, Kirikiri pending the hearing of bail application, reports The Nation.
The Police Special Fraud Unit (SFU) yesterday arraigned Onuoha and her company, Elhcrim Nigeria Limited before Justice Oshodi over alleged forgery.
Onuoha was arraigned on a twelve-count charge bordering on conspiracy, forgery, and the uttering of false documents, aimed at defrauding the Bank of Industries (BoI).
The defendants, along with others now at large, were alleged to have conspired in 2020 to forge a lease agreement dated February 12, 2018.
The forged document was purportedly submitted to the BoI as part of a scheme to fraudulently secure a loan, to the detriment of one Ngozi Braide.
These actions were allegedly carried out with full knowledge that the signatures were fake, intending to use the document as genuine before the bank.
SFU prosecutor, Emmanuel Jackson, informed the court that the forged documents posed significant risks to the financial institution and the individuals whose signatures were fraudulently used.
The defendant pleaded not guilty.
Jackson requested the court to proceed to trial and sought the remand of the defendant at a correctional facility pending the conclusion of the case.
However, defense counsel Ikechukwu Chiha urged the court to hear the defendant’s bail application, citing the need for her to prepare adequately for her defense.
After hearing both parties, Justice Oshodi adjourned the matter to February 25 for the hearing of the bail application.
