The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has secured the conviction of Kelechi Declan James, who was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment for impersonation by the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos.
Justice Daniel Osiagor handed down the sentence on Friday, October 9, 2026, after James pleaded guilty to a one-count charge brought against him by the commission’s Lagos Zonal Directorate 1.
The court gave him the option of paying a ₦300,000 fine and also ordered him to perform three days of community service.
According to the charge, James fraudulently impersonated an individual identified as “David Hernandez” on his Facebook account on or about September 9, 2026, with the intention of gaining an advantage for himself.
The offence was brought under Section 22(2)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015, as amended in 2024.
The case followed a petition received by the EFCC alleging that James had defrauded the petitioner of $135,000 in a foreign exchange transaction.
According to the petition, the suspect approached the petitioner in December 2024, claiming to have Nigerian business partners who needed foreign currency exchange services.
James allegedly persuaded the petitioner to source and transfer $135,000, equivalent to N201,165,843.50, into an account he nominated.
The petitioner alleged that although James acknowledged receiving the money, he failed to remit the agreed naira equivalent or refund the dollars.
Efforts to recover the funds reportedly proved unsuccessful, prompting the petitioner to seek the EFCC’s intervention.
When the charge was read to him in court, James pleaded guilty.
Prosecuting counsel, S. I. Suleiman, subsequently presented the facts of the case and urged the court to convict and sentence the defendant.
Justice Osiagor thereafter convicted James and sentenced him to three years’ imprisonment, with an option of a N300,000 fine, alongside the order to perform three days of community service.
