Travel agent jailed 18 months for N4.2m visa fraud

A Kaduna Chief Magistrates’ Court on Wednesday sentenced a 40-year-old travel agent, Olalekan Yusuf, to 18 months imprisonment for N4.2m visa fraud.

The Magistrate, Ibrahim Emmanuel, sentenced Yusuf after he pleaded guilty to the offence and begged for leniency.

He, however, gave him an option of N200, 000 fine and ordered him to restitute N4.1m to the complainants, Sarah Thomas and Christian Gabriel.

Emmanuel further ordered that in the event the convict failed to restitute the complainants, he shall serve an additional one year prison term.

Yusuf, a resident of Malali, Kaduna, is standing trial for fraud.

The prosecutor told the court that the matter was reported at the Gabasawa Police Station Kaduna on June 16.

He said that sometime in Jan. 24, the defendant obtained N2.1 million each from the complainants, on the pretext of being a travel agent and could assist them in securing a travel visa to the U.S and Dubai.

“The defendant approached the complainants claiming he was a travel agent when he heard that they needed an agent to help them process a U.S. and Dubai visa.

“After collecting the money from the complainants, he absconded to an unknown destination.

“Efforts made by the complainants to get the visa or retrieve his money from the defendant proved unsuccessful as the defendant refused to pick calls from the complainant’s cell phone,” Leo said.

He added that the defendant was arrested on June 16, at his house after the complainants got his address from his friend.

The prosecutor said that the offences violated the Penal Code of Kaduna State, 2017.