A Kwara High Court sitting in Ilorin on Friday sentenced two sureties over their failure to produce two suspects for trial.

The duo are employees of the state government and had stood as sureties for suspects being investigated by Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The Ilorin Zonal Command of the EFCC secured the conviction.

The sureties are Adenigba Olusola of the State Judicial Service Commission, and Bisiriyu AbdulFatai of the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB).

Delivering ruling on the applications, Justice Adenike Akinpelu agreed with the submission of prosecutors Sesan Ola and Andrew Akoja, that the two sureties should forfeit their bail bond.

The court ordered Mr Olusola to forfeit the recognisance of N5 million and remit the sum of N4.5 million for the first defendant.

He should pay the sum of N500,000 within three months or be committed to six months in prison.

Also to forfeit the recognisance of N1 million for the second defendant and remit the sum of N750,000 for the second defendant.

He should pay the sum of N250,000 within three months or be committed to prison for five months.

The court also ordered Mr AbdulFatai to forfeit the recognisance of N3 million and remit the sum of N2 million for the third defendant.

He was ordered to pay N1 million within three months or be committed to six months in prison.

The defendants were arraigned by the EFCC for internet fraud related offences.

Mr Olusola stood as surety for one Amaechi Umenye and Adeyemi Adedeji, while Mr AbdulFatai stood for Dawodu Olusoji.

The two civil servants had made an undertaking to produce the defendants, who are now at large, anytime they were needed by EFCC.

The trio of Umenye, Adedeji and Olusoji were amongst the 30 suspected internet fraudsters arrested in Offa, Offa Local Government Area of the state, sometime in 2020, while acting on anonymous petition received by the EFCC.

During the course of investigation, the sureties wrote separate bail applications to the Ilorin Zonal Commander of the EFCC.

They also entered bail bonds and promised to produce the defendants anytime their attention was needed.

The suspects after their release, however, jumped the administrative bail granted them by the EFCC, while the sureties also could not produce them in court.

(NAN)