Two students face trial for stealing N1.9b from MTN

3 months ago 44

Police Special Fraud Unit, Ikoyi, yesterday, brought two students – Timothy Fashina Oluwabukola and Anthony Imonina Odemerho – before a Lagos High Court for allegedly hacking MTN Nigeria Communication Plc’s computers, and stealing airtime and data valued at N1.9 billion.

The duo were said to be students of Moshood Abiola Polytechnic (MAPOLY) Abeokuta, Ogun State and Resign Regal Academy in Benin City, Edo State, respectively.
They were arraigned before Justice Akintayo Aluko, on a four-count charge bordering on conspiracy, unauthorised access into the company’s web-based platform known as Application Programming Interface (API) and unlawful conversion.

The police said the defendants and others at large allegedly committed the offences between January and April this year, in Lagos and Edo States. The prosecution counsel, Justine Enang, told court that the defendants conspired and accessed the telco’s API and obtained data from the said application, which they used to defraud MTN to the tune of N1.9 billion.

Among others, he said the defendants offences contravened Section 27(1)(b); 6(2) and 28(1)(b) of the Cybercrime (prohibition, prevention, etc) Act, 2015 as amended in 2024, but punishable under Section 8(2) of the same Act.

The two defendants pleaded not guilty to the four counts charge read to them. Following their plea of not guilty, the prosecutor prayed the court for a trial date and urged the court to remand them in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Services (NCoS) till the determination of the charge.

But the defence counsel told the court that he had filed their clients’ bail applications and same had been served on the prosecutor. Justice Aluko therefore adjourned to August 5, for hearing of the defendants’ bail applications.

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