Lagos Court Orders Businesswoman and Company to Defend Alleged N110m Fraud Charges

In a significant legal development, Justice O.O. Abike-Fadipe of the Special Offences Court in Ikeja, Lagos, has ruled that businesswoman Portia Emilia and her company, Savanah Crest Investment Limited, must enter their defences in an alleged N110 million fraud case brought against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The defendants were re-arraigned on March 16, 2023, facing amended five-count charges that include conspiracy to steal, obtaining money and property by false pretences, stealing, and retaining stolen property.

One of the counts specifically alleges that Portia Anthony Emilia and Savanah Crest Investment Limited, “sometime in 2018 in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, with intent to defraud, stole and dishonestly converted to your own the sum of N40,000,000.00 (Forty Million Naira only).” Another count accuses them of fraudulently obtaining N20,000,000.00 (Twenty Million Naira) from one Wendy Daniel in the same year.

Emilia, who entered a plea on behalf of the company, pleaded “not guilty” to all the charges.

During the trial, the prosecution counsel, F. Ofoma, presented two witnesses and submitted numerous documents as evidence. The prosecution concluded its case on March 16, 2023. However, the defence counsel, J.J. Amodu, filed a no-case submission, asserting that his clients had no case to answer despite the evidence presented by the EFCC.

In her ruling on the no-case submission, Justice Abike-Fadipe determined that the prosecution had successfully established a prima facie case against the defendants on all counts, thereby compelling them to provide their side of the story. She stated, “I am satisfied that the prosecution has established a prima facie case, which the defendants are called upon to answer. The no-case submission is hereby overruled, and the defendants are called upon to enter their defence.”

The case has been adjourned to January 18 and 25, 2024, and February 1, 2024, marking the next significant steps in this legal process.