A 53-year-old man, who allegedly obtained phones and money on the pretext of performing spiritual work for another man, on Thursday appeared before an Ojo Magistrates’ Court in Lagos State.
The defendant is standing trial before Magistrate L.K. J. Layeni on a two-count charge of fraud and stealing.
He, however, pleaded not guilty to the charge.
The prosecutor, Dr Simon Uche, told the court that the defendant committed the offences from August 2022 to October 2023 at the Alaba Rago area of Ojo.
He alleged that the defendant obtained an iPhone 11 Pro and a Redmi 9 phone as well as N630,000 from one Mr Emmanuel Felix, under false pretences of performing spiritual work for him.
The iPhone 11 Pro is valued at N420,000 while the Redmi 9 is worth N60,000.
The prosecutor alleged that the defendant knew that his representation to the complainant was false.
He added that the defendant failed to carry out the spiritual work as promised.
The alleged offences contravene the provisions of Sections 287 and 314 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
Layeni granted the defendant bail in the sum of N500,000 with two sureties in like sum.
He adjourned the case until Jan. 15, 2024, for mention.