Court Jails Man Three Years for Facebook Impersonation in $135,000 Fraud Case
The Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, has sentenced Kelechi Declan James to three years’ imprisonment for impersonation in a case prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Justice Daniel Osiagor delivered the judgment on Friday, October 9, 2026, following James’s guilty plea to a one-count charge filed by the EFCC’s Lagos Zonal Directorate 1.
The charge alleged that James, on or about September 9, 2026, fraudulently impersonated a person identified as “David Hernandez” on his Facebook account to gain an advantage for himself.
The offence was said to be punishable under Section 22(2)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015, as amended in 2024.
According to the EFCC, the case followed a petition alleging that, in December 2024, James approached the petitioner, claiming to have Nigerian business partners who needed foreign currency exchange services.
The petitioner alleged that James persuaded him to source and transfer $135,000, equivalent to ₦201,165,843.50, into an account nominated by him.
Despite allegedly acknowledging receipt of the funds, James reportedly failed to remit the agreed naira equivalent or refund the dollars. The petitioner said efforts to recover the money were unsuccessful.
Following James’s guilty plea, prosecuting counsel, S. I. Suleiman, presented the facts of the case and urged the court to convict and sentence him accordingly.
Justice Osiagor subsequently sentenced James to three years’ imprisonment, with an option of a ₦300,000 fine. The court also ordered him to undertake three days of community service in connection with the sentence.
Court Jails Man Three Years for Facebook Impersonation in $135,000 Fraud Case