Punch Metro gathered that the travel agent’s office was located near a police station, which made people to think that his business was legitimate.
Joshua was said to have allegedly collected a total of N11.3m from about 300 people under the false pretences of procuring Dubai visas for them.
One of the victims, Elder Udenkwo, in company with five others, reported Joshua at the police station after finding out that he had defrauded them.
Udenkwo, in his statement to the police, said, “Joshua, who said he resigned from a military hospital to start a travel agency business, assured me that he would handle the passport and other expenses, but I should pay N10,000 for a form and N5,000 for medical test, which I did.
“I started informing people about the offer and even people from my village. About 200 people came all the way from the South-East to register. He collected N25,000 each from them, totalling N5m. Anytime I called to know the next development, he would say that he was kidnapped.”
The agent, however, claimed that he was working on behalf of one contractor, identified as Mr Geoffrey, who introduced him to the Dubai visa business.
He said, “Geoffrey introduced me to the business and told me to register as an agent in Abuja with a sum of N500,000, which I borrowed from a bank.
“After paying the money, he asked me to recruit more people so we could all move to Dubai. Some of our clients also helped us to recruit more people. Since I remitted the money to him, I’ve not known his whereabouts.”
Joshua was arraigned before the Candide Johnson Court House, Ikorodu, on 10 counts bordering on fraud and assault.
The charges read in part, “That you, Joshua, and others at large, on Odo-Nla Road, Odogunyan, Ikorodu, in the Ikorodu Magisterial District, did conspire together to commit felony, to wit; fraud, thereby committing an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 325 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State of Nigeria, 2015.
“That you, Joshua and others at large, at the aforementioned magisterial district, did fraudulently and unlawfully assault Remiguis Ekeopara, Chibueze Benjamine, Odumoso Charity and Moses Michael by injecting them with syringe and needles to take their blood samples, thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 171(2) (b) (c) and punishable under Section 172 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State of Nigeria, 2015.”
The presiding magistrate, Mr Olatunji, admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N500,000 with two sureties each in like sum.
The case was adjourned till December 3, 2018.
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