A 26-year-old medical doctor-turned hacker, Michael Williams, was on Monday brought before an Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos State charged with stealing a Porsche car valued at N28 million.
The accused, who lives at 2667, Hilton Layout, Lekki area of Lagos State, is standing trial on a two-count charge of conspiracy and stealing, to which he pleaded not guilty.
Police Prosecutor Peter Nwangwu told the court that the accused committed the offences on May 10 at Ajah on the Epe-Lekki Expressway at 7.50pm.
Nwangwu said the accused committed the offences with others still at large.
According to him, Williams stole a Porsche car valued at N28 million, property of the complainant, Abidogun Adewale.
The prosecutor also alleged that the accused stole a Toyota Corolla car valued at N3.5 million belonging to Omopeyin Oluwaseun.
The accused was apprehended by the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad in Ikeja, following a petition.
The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the prosecutor told the court that the medical doctor uses online technological tools and applications to perpetrate fake business transactions.
The accused, who had worked with Front Line hospitals in Lagos, including Eko Hospital and Tolu Medical Centre, has been hacking into customers’ accounts with banks and financial institutions as well as monitor their private emails.
It was alleged that through the hacking expertise the accused acquired in Canada, he delved into fraudulent activities.
The accused buys various goods worth millions of naira with credit cards and make false payments in tranches to unsuspecting victims.
Williams met his waterloo sometime in March when a petition was lodged at the Commissioner of Police’s office by a car mart owner, Abidogun Adewale.
Adewale alleged that the accused bought a Porsche car valued at N28 million.
He said: “The accused paid into his bank account but on visiting his banker, he discovered he had actually received a false bank alert indicating payment for a car sold at N28 million.
“The accused is member of a syndicate that goes to car shops, buys a car, configures a computer programme that would send a fake payment alert to the seller and by so doing, obtains a car.
“The accused thereafter requested for the complainant’s bank account number and made it look like he had paid him via the fake alert to his phone using HTTP tunnel.com.”
“This enables him to shut down any system of his interest on yt.com internet sophistication; for example Youtube and Facebook to make them unworkable for 67 minutes.”
The offences contravened Sections 287 and 411 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015 (Revised).
NAN also reports that Section 287 stipulates a three-year jail term for stealing, while Section 411 prescribes seven years for conspiracy.
The Chief Magistrate, Y. O. Aje-Afunwa, granted the accused bail in the sum of N2.5 million with two responsible sureties.
Aje-Afunwa said the sureties must be gainfully employed with an evidence of three years tax payment to the Lagos State Government and adjourned the case until August 6. (NAN)
