February 2, 2016
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- Law News, Nigeria News
A Lagos State Magistrate Court sitting in Agege has adjourned till March 14, 2016, the trial of a former employee of Punch Nigeria Limited, Olamide Fashanu, who is accused of N4.9m theft.
Fashanu, a former advertisement executive with Punch Nigeria Limited, is being prosecuted by the police for allegedly stealing the sum of N4, 936,805 belonging to the firm.
The offence is said to be contrary to and punishable under Section 284 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.
The accused had, however, pleaded not guilty and was admitted to bail in the sum of N100,000.
At the Monday proceedings, the police opened its case against Fashanu by calling its first witness, Ademola Ayeni, an accountant with Punch Nigeria Limited.
While being led in evidence by the police prosecutor, Joseph Ajebe, Ayeni told the court how Fashanu allegedly committed the offence between October 2013 and December 19, 2014 at 1 Olu Aboderin Street, Onipetesi, Ikeja, Lagos State.
Ayeni told the presiding Magistrate, Mr. Oyetade Komolafe, that he uncovered the theft in the course of his routine collection and updating of advertisement profile data.
He said he discovered that some advertisements published in The PUNCH Newspaper titles between 2013 and 2014 in the name of Fashanu were not paid for to the tune of N6,149,417.26, after which he reported to Fashanu’s superiors.
According to Ayeni, a memo was issued to Fashanu, to which the accused replied that the advertisers involved had yet to pay for the services.
Ayeni said investigations by the company, however, revealed that the various advertisers had since paid for the services while Fashanu refused to remit the monies to the company.
Ayeni said all efforts to recover the sum from Fashanu proved abortive, forcing the company to report the matter to the police, which, in the course of investigations, recovered N1, 212, 612.26 out of the sum from Fashanu.
Ayeni said, “During my routine update and reporting, I discovered that adverts published in the name of Olamide Fashanu, who as of then was an advert executive with Punch Nigeria Limited, to the tune of N6, 149,417.26 were not paid for and I reported to his superiors.”
But an attempt by the police prosecutor, Ajebe, to tender to the court a statement made by Ayeni to the police was resisted by Fashanu’s lawyer, Kingsley Kezie, who argued that the statement was a public document and was not certified as required by Section 102 of the Evidence Act.
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