- Court Orders Remand of Farmer Over Cassava Farm Fraud, Assault
- Chief Magistrate Kevin Mbanongun did not take the defendant’s plea
- The offences, the prosecutor said, violate Sections 97 (criminal conspiracy), 324 (cheating), 288 (theft), and 230 (attempted culpable homicide) of the Penal Code Laws of Benue State, 2004
A Chief Magistrates’ Court in Makurdi on Friday ordered the remand of Blessing Wanyam, a 43-year-old farmer, at the Correctional Centre in Makurdi for allegedly defrauding a woman of N700,000 and physically assaulting her.
Eko Hot Blog reports that Wanyam who resides behind St Patrick Catholic Church in Taraku, Gwer-East Local Government Area of Benue State, faces charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating, theft, and attempted culpable homicide.
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Chief Magistrate Kevin Mbanongun did not take the defendant’s plea, citing lack of jurisdiction in the matter. The court directed that she be held in custody while investigations continue.
According to Inspector Godwin Ato, the case was transferred to the State CID Makurdi from the Aliade Police Division via an official letter dated September 3.
The complainant, Mrs Maria Amokaha, had initially reported the matter at the Aliade Police Station in February, claiming that Wanyam fraudulently induced her to make an upfront payment of N700,000 for what was supposed to be 100 lines of cassava farmland in Taraku.
Amokaha said that when she visited the farm on August 27, she discovered that Wanyam and a group of accomplices armed with cutlasses, knives, and sticks had already harvested half of the cassava.
According to the complaint, when she tried to stop them from harvesting the remaining crops, she was violently attacked and beaten until she lost consciousness. She was later revived by passersby.
Inspector Ato told the court that the defendant was arrested following a police investigation and voluntarily confessed to the alleged crimes.
He added that other suspects involved in the attack are still at large.
The offences, the prosecutor said, violate Sections 97 (criminal conspiracy), 324 (cheating), 288 (theft), and 230 (attempted culpable homicide) of the Penal Code Laws of Benue State, 2004.
The case has been adjourned pending further investigation, while Wanyam remains in custody.
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