Businessman, docked for allegedly cheating customer

A 37-year-old businessman, Abubakar Waziri, was on Monday arraigned at an Upper Area Court Gwagwalada in Abuja for allegedly cheating his customer.

The police charged Waziri, who resides in Kuchiako Kuje area of Abuja, with cheating.

The prosecution counsel, Abdullahi Tanko, told the court that the complainant, Aliyu Alqasiru of Lugbe area in Abuja, reported the matter at the Kuje Police Station on Feb. 29, 2021.

Tanko said that the complainant purchased a Peugeot 406 salon car from the defendant at the rate of N780,000 and paid a cash sum of N760,000.

He said that the defendant deceived the complainant that he was taking the car for repair, but sold the car to another customer without the consent of the complainant.

The prosecutor also told the court that during police investigation, the sum of N500,000 was recovered from the defendant who had  since refused to pay the balance of N280,000.

Tanko said that the offence contravened Section 322, while the defendant pleaded not guilty to the charge.

The defence counsel, Isaac Adakole, in his oral bail application prayed the court to grant his client bail in the most liberal terms, citing Sections 158 and 162 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA), to support his claims for bail.

The Judge, Mr Sani Umar, admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N500,000 with one reasonable and reliable surety in like sum, whom he said  must reside within the jurisdiction of the court.

Umar also said that the surety must provide two recent passport photographs and valid means of identification.

He ordered that the address of the surety be verified by the court’s staff and in default, the defendant should be remanded in prison custody.

He adjourned the case until Dec. 7 for hearing.