Justice R. A. Osodi of the Special Offences Court in Ikeja, Lagos, has found businessman Kolawole Erinle guilty of $1.4 million fraud and sentenced him to 12 years in prison. During the prosecution’s cross-examination, Erinle admitted to being a former convict in the United States, where he served a 23-month prison sentence. Erinle and his company, Rinde-Remdex Nigeria Limited, were initially brought before Justice Oluwatoyin Taiwo of the Special Offences Court on March 11, 2022. This information was shared in a statement signed by Dele Oyewale, the acting Head of Media and Publicity of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, on Friday.
Despite his plea of “not guilty”, the trial could not be completed before Justice Taiwo retired, leading to the case being transferred to Justice Oshodi.
On October 28, 2022, he faced new charges before Justice Oshodi, including conspiracy, retaining proceeds of criminal activity, and obtaining money through deceitful means amounting to $1,410,000.
Following the conclusion of the prosecution’s case, Erinle presented his defense in court. Led by his counsel, Lawal Pedro, SAN, he refuted the accusations made against him by the prosecution. On September 26, 2023, Justice Oshodi delivered the verdict, finding both the defendant and his company guilty as charged. The judge also determined that the prosecution had successfully demonstrated their case beyond any reasonable doubt.
Taking into account the information provided that despite serving a 23-month prison term, there has been no change in the defendant’s behavior, I have regarded this as aggravating circumstances. The defendant expressed remorse, but I am skeptical about the genuineness of this remorse, although he did admit to it.” Following this, Justice Oshodi imposed a five-year sentence for count two and a 12-year sentence for count three. These sentences will be served concurrently starting from February 10, 2023, when the defendant was initially remanded by the court.