A Federal High Court, sitting
in Calabar, Cross River State, presided over by Justice Rosemary
Oghogho-rie has convicted and sentenced Dr. Geraldine Orok Ita
to prison for fraud.
Ita was prosecuted by the Uyo
Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
EFCC, on a twelve-count charge, bordering on forgery and
diversion of fund to the tune of N127, 686, 594, 87k (One Hundred
and Twenty-seven Million, Six Hundred and Eighty-six
Thousand, Five Hundred and Ninety-four Naira, Eighty-seven Kobo).
One of the charges reads: “That you, Dr Geraldine
Orok Ita 'F' on or about the 6th day of November, 2014, in Calabar, within the
jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, did make a forged document to wit: FORM
CAC 10 (ANNUAL RETURN FOR A SMALL COMPANY) IN RESPECT OF SHARPNET CONCEPT
LIMITED DATED 06/1 1/2014, purported to have been signed by Mrs. Rose Orok Ita
(a Director in Sharpnet Concept Limited), with the intent that the document may
be acted upon as genuine and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section
1 (2) (C) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act Cap M 17 of the Revised
Edition (Law of the Federation of Nigeria) and Punishable under Section 1
(2) (c) of the same Act.”
Another reads: “That you, Dr Geraldine Orok Ita
'F' on or about 14/02/2019, in Calabar, within the jurisdiction of this
Honourable Court, did take possession of the sum of Forty- Five Million Naira
(#45,000,000) through Bank Account No: 2027011283 domiciled in First Bank with
Account Name: Rok Projects Limited, paid by the University of Calabar (UNICAL)
for the project executed by ROK PROJECTS LIMITED/SHARPNET CONCEPT LIMITED, when
you reasonably ought to know that the money was part of the proceeds of
crime to wit: forgery and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 15
(2) (d) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011 (as amended) and
punishable under Section 16 (3) of the same Act.”
She pleaded “not guilty” to the
charges, prompting her trial that commenced in 2019. In the course of the
trial, prosecution counsel, Joshua Abolarin called witnesses
and presented incontrovertible evidence.
Convinced that the prosecution proved its case beyond
reasonable doubt, Justice Oghogho-rie convicted and sentenced
Ita to seven years imprisonment.
Ita's journey to Nigeria Correctional
Centre commenced when the Commission received a petition in 2019 from
Sharpnet Concept Limited and ROK Project Limited initiated by two of its
directors alleging that Geraldine Orok Ita forged
and fraudulently altered the documents of the companies in
favour of herself by removing the two initial directors from the
companies' records and claiming to be the second wife of Engr. Orok
Okonkon Ita who died in 2004. The petitioners further
stated that besides carrying out the fraudulent
alterations, the convict appointed a new company Secretary on
November 6, 2014 and changed the registered address of the
companies at No. 25, Uyo Street, off Market Road, Port Harcourt, River
State and made re-allotments and return of allotments of shares.
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