The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, #EFCC, Port Harcourt’s office, on Thursday, June 28, 2018, arraigned Moses Edet before Justice Adamu Turaki of the Federal High Court sitting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
Edet was arraigned on one-count charge bordering on obtaining money by false pretence to the tune of N7, 000, 000.00 (Seven Million Naira) only.
Troubles came for him when a petitioner alleged that she invested the sum of N7,000,000.00 in a Bit Coin Scheme (gethelpworldwide.com) promoted by the defendant with an assurance of 50% returns on investment. Edet allegedly issued some post-dated cheques to the petitioner as possible profits on the Scheme. However, the cheques turned out to be dud. Every efforts to get the defendant return the principal or interests on the investment was unsuccessful.
The one-count charge reads: “that you Mr. Umoren Moses Edet sometime in 2017, in Port Harcourt within the jurisdiction of this Honourable court with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of N7, 000, 000. 00 (Seven Million Naira) by introducing one Mrs. Amaka Joy to pay the sum of N7, 000, 000.00 for purchase/trade in bit coins, assuring her under the false pretence of making a 50% profit on the investment in bit coins, a representation you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 1(1)(a) of Advanced Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act No. 14, 2006 and punishable under section 1(3) of the same Act”.
The defendant pleaded not guilty to the charge.
In view of his plea, prosecution counsel, Celestina Okorie, applied for a date for the commencement of trial but the defense counsel, O.J. Atolagbe, informed the court that he had already applied for bail of his client.
Justice Turaki granted the defendant bail in the sum of N2million and two sureties in like sum. One of the sureties must have a landed property with Certificate of Occupancy in Port Harcourt, the other surety must be a civil servant on not less than Grade Level 14 . The EFCC was directed to verify the property.