Man lands in court over using another man’s house as collateral for bank loan

Abimbola Abatta, Osogbo

A 35-year-old man has been arraigned before an Ile-Ife Magistrates’ Court for allegedly using someone else’s house as collateral to obtain a bank loan.

The accused person allegedly committed the offence on January 17, 2017 in Ile-Ife.

The accused person who was tried for perjury, fraud, illegal conversion and forgery pleaded not guilty to the charges leveled against him.

The prosecutor, Inspector Elijah Adesina told the court that the accused person approached a High Court Registry in Ile-Ife to obtain an affidavit purporting him to be the owner of a building situated at Oke-Ogbo area, Ile-Ife.

He said the accused person unlawfully forged a survey plan and sale of land agreement executed by one Akeem Adeyera to perpetrate the fraud.

The prosecutor said the accused allegedly intended to defraud the bank and the owner of the building because he knew that the building belonged to someone else.

He claimed that the accused person used the affidavit as collateral to fraudulently secure a loan of N500,000 from a Micro Finance Bank in Osun.

The prosecutor alleged that the accused person collected and converted the N500,000 to his own use.

He said the accused person was caught when his transactions turned out to be a false representation when he failed to service the loan.

The offence committed contravened Sections 118, 383, 390(9), 419 and 473 of the Criminal Code, Laws of Osun, 2002.

The Defence Counsel, Mr Nicholas Babatunde, prayed the court to grant his client bail in most liberal terms.

He pledged that the accused person would not jump bail, but would provide reliable sureties.

Magistrate Adewumi Oyebadejo granted the accused person bail in the sum of N100,000 with one surety in like sum.

Oyebadejo said that the surety must swear to affidavit of means and reside within the court’s jurisdiction.

The magistrate also ordered that the surety must produce three recent passport photographs.

The case was adjourned till September 22 for hearing.