The Special Fraud Unit (SFU) on Tuesday arraigned four sales representatives of Global Healthcare Limited at the Federal High Court in Lagos for allegedly defrauding the company of over N92million.
Badmus Oladimeji, Austin Odokara and Ademola Olanisha were accused of converting the company’s N92,391,350.25million to their own use.
Prosecution counsel Effiong Asuquo said they allegedly collaborated with the firm’s National Sales Manager, Olufemi Olaniyan, to perpetrate the fraud between October 2014 and last February.
The police said they “did convert” the money to their use “with the aim of concealing or disguising the illicit nature or origin of the funds.”
The police said another sales representative, Gbenga Babatunde, also collaborated with Olaniyan to convert the company’s N2.5million.
Oladimeji was also accused of forging and falsifying local purchase orders to unlawfully obtain pharmaceutical products from Global Healthcare to the company’s detriment.
The alleged offences are contrary to Section 15(1)(a)(ii) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act 2011 as amended and Section 1 (2)(c) of the Miscellaneous Offences Act of 2004.
The defendants pleaded not guilty. Oladimeji’s lawyer, Chima Adiele, pleaded with Justice Abdulazeez Anka not to remand his client in prison because he has a bullet in his body and was supposed to be in the hospital.
He said the defendant was shot by robbers in 2012 while on official assignment and that a “stubborn” bullet was still stuck in his body.
But the judge refused the prayers, wondering why the bullet had not been removed for four years. He directed defence counsel to file bail applications.
Justice Anka ordered the defendants to be remanded in prison. He adjourned until September 24 for trial.