The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has arraigned a Nigerian, two Chinese nationals, and their company before the Federal High Court in Lagos over an alleged N3.4 billion fraud and a conspiracy aimed at disrupting Nigeria’s economic framework.
The accused individuals; Huang Haoyu, Friday Audu, An Hongxu, and their company, Gentting International Ltd,appeared before Justice Daniel Osiagor on a 12-count charge related to cybercrime.
They all entered a plea of not guilty.
Prosecution counsel, Mrs. Bilikisu Buhari, informed the court that the offences were committed in Lagos in 2024.
She alleged that the defendants, in collaboration with one Dualiang Pan (who is currently at large), recruited Nigerian youths to impersonate foreign nationals.
Additionally, they were accused of engaging Chukwuemeka Okeke to store $1.2 million in his cryptocurrency wallet, an amount believed to be linked to fraudulent activities.
The prosecution further claimed that Alhassan Garba and Ifesinaci Jacobs were also enlisted to retain $1.3 million in their crypto wallets, which was suspected to be proceeds of crime.
Furthermore, the EFCC alleged that the defendants kept N3.4 billion in Gentting International Ltd’s Union Bank account, a sum suspected to be derived from fraudulent dealings.
Investigations revealed that they transferred significant amounts—including N106 million and N913 million—to Dualiang Pan’s UBA account, transactions that were also linked to their alleged fraudulent activities.
The prosecution contended that these financial transactions bypassed the official foreign exchange market, as mandated by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The alleged offences violate Section 29(2) of the Foreign Exchange Monitoring and Miscellaneous Provisions Act, 2004. They also contravene sections 18 and 27 of the Cybercrime (Prohibition) Act, 2015, as well as sections 18(2)(d) and 21(c) of the Money Laundering Act, 2021.
Following their arraignment, Justice Osiagor scheduled March 20 for the hearing of their bail applications and ordered that the defendants remain in EFCC custody until then.
