ALHAJI SHARAFADEEN IRORUN: COURT SENTENCED MAN TO 10 YEARS’ IMPRISONMENT OVER HAJJ PILGRIMAGE SCAM

For a decade, they all looked up to the judiciary, which is often seen as the only arbiter of the common man. Hope was lost, expectations dashed, and faith shattered. It was a long walk to victory for 46 Hajj pilgrimage hopefuls who were duped exactly 10 years ago when they wanted to embark on a journey to Mecca. The journey was aborted as they entered the hand of a “con man.”

But last week, the law of the land took its full course and justice was served.

Justice Oyindamola Ogala of the Ikeja Division of the Lagos High Court sentenced the culprit, Alhaji Sharafadeen Irorun, to 10 years’ imprisonment for scamming Muslim pilgrims out of their money to the tune of N7,500,000.

Before his sentencing, the trial judge found Irorun guilty on April 29, 2024, on four counts out of a 12-count charge bordering on obtaining by false pretence and stealing brought against him by the Lagos government.

Ogala held that the prosecution had sufficiently established that the defendant and others at large are a criminal group and convicted Irorun on counts one, two, five and six.

She said, “The defendant and others who are at large are a criminal group who unwittingly dispossessed innocent persons of their money under the pretext of helping them undergo the Hajj pilgrimage.”

The judge convicted him on the provision of section 312, 285 (9) (b) of the Criminal Laws of Lagos State 2011.

However, while sentencing the convict, the judge held that the convict obtained by false presence and stealing. She therefore sentenced him to 10 years imprisonment. The judge ordered the prison term to commence from June 6, 2022.

During the trial, the prosecution counsel, Mr O. A. Azeez, called three witnesses, including one of the nominal complainants who contributed the money that the third prosecution witness (PW3), Alhaji Lukman Abdulkareem, gave to the defendant.

The judge found that PW1 and PW2 had no direct involvement with the defendant but supported the evidence of PW3, who was involved with the defendant and whose evidence she called “succinct and direct.”

She said, “It is also clear to the court that the evidence of PW1 and PW2 are fair, consistent to the case and indeed corroborate the evidence of the PW3.”

However, the judge acquitted Irorun of the other eight counts in the charge against him after she stated that the prosecution had insufficient evidence to convict him.

Justice Ogala said the PW3 told the court that 46 people, including himself, had contributed money and paid N7,500,000 to the defendant to procure forms from the Lagos State Muslim Pilgrims Board in 2014.

She said that PW2 gave evidence that he gave N800,000 to PW3 to help him pay for the Hajj pilgrimage for eight people after their original arrangement to secure seats failed.

She said that the PW3 told the court that he discovered he had been scammed after he requested officials to give him the bag gifts meant for the pilgrims and was told that their names were not on the list.

The PW3 told the court that he reported the incident to the police, who tracked down the defendant to his hometown residence in Osun. There, they discovered other fake Lagos State Muslim Pilgrims Board forms.

Ogala noted that the defendant’s counsel, S.M. Olatunji, told the court that the prosecution did not bring the Investigating Police Officer on the case to the court to give evidence.

She said Olatunji told the court that the defendant did not take money from the claimants.

The judge told the court that she had considered the evidence and held that the prosecution had established that the defendant was part of a criminal group that scams people out of their money under the pretext of pilgrimage.

She acquitted the convict on eight counts of the charge and said the prosecution provided insufficient evidence for her to convict the defendant on them.

@ Thisday Newspaper