The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned a self-proclaimed native doctor, Olorunbukunmi Taiwo, and his wife, Awolegan Omolola Omotola, over an alleged contract fraud involving N1.098 billion.
The couple was brought before Justice Abubakar Usman of the Federal High Court in Ado-Ekiti by the Ilorin Zonal Directorate of the EFCC on a six-count charge bordering on obtaining money under false pretences and retention of proceeds of crime.
According to the anti-graft agency, the defendants allegedly deceived a Delta State-based school proprietor and widow, Anazia Colina Kenechukwu, into financing a purported road construction contract said to have been awarded to Taiwo by the Delta State Oil Producing Area Development Commission (DESOPADEC).
The petitioner alleged that she transferred a total of N1.98 billion into Taiwo’s Access Bank account based on the representation that the funds would be used to execute the contract.
EFCC investigations reportedly revealed that part of the funds was diverted into the acquisition of properties in Ado-Ekiti. The properties include Town Tavern Lounge, located along Ikere Road, and a four-bedroom bungalow in Florence Court, Irewolede Estate.
The commission had earlier secured an interim forfeiture order on the two properties on May 25, 2026, pending the outcome of the case.
One of the charges filed against the defendants alleges that between January 2024 and November 2025, they fraudulently obtained N1,098,961,500 from Kenechukwu by falsely claiming the money would be used to execute a DESOPADEC road project.
The offence is said to contravene provisions of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.
When the charges were read in court, both defendants pleaded not guilty.
Following their plea, EFCC counsel, Sesan Ola, requested a trial date and urged the court to remand the defendants pending further proceedings.
Justice Usman subsequently adjourned the case until June 11, 2026, for the hearing of the bail application and commencement of trial. The court also ordered that the defendants be remanded in the EFCC custody pending the determination of their bail request.
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