A couple whose names are Harry and Kristen Uyanwanne have been sentenced to a combined 16 years imprisonment by the special offences court in Ikoyi, L
A couple whose names are Harry and Kristen Uyanwanne have been sentenced to a combined 16 years imprisonment by the special offences court in Ikoyi, Lagos for using a church known as Temple International Church to defraud people to a tune N52 million.
This was revealed via a court ruling by Justice Mojisola Dada on Wednesday, December 4.
The court also directed that Temple International Church be deregistered and shut down.
The Economic FCC had earlier brought the couple to court on Tuesday, February 25, 2020, where the couple and the church were charged with seven counts related to theft and fraud although they pleaded not guilty and the trial continued.
However, during the court ruling on Wednesday, December 4, Dada sentenced the couple to three years in prison for the first count, while the first defendant, Harry, was given seven-year sentence for counts two through six.
The court cleared and set the second defendant, Kristen, free on count seven.
However, the judge ruled that the sentences would be served concurrently and ordered the closure of the church.
She also directed the convicts to repay N31 million to the named complainant within 60 days of the judgment.
The prosecution had argued that, in March 2016, the convicts unlawfully took N10 million belonging to the late Mrs. Adeola Odemuyiwa for their own use.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC also informed the court that the convicts sold a property at Plot 32, Block 9, Magodo, Lagos, to Kingsley Atere for N42 million, falsely claiming that the first defendant had been authorized by the complainant to sell the property.
The prosecution stated that the offences contravened Sections 1 (2) and (3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act 2006.
The offences also breached Sections 278 and 285(1) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.
