By Innocent Anaba & Wahab Abdulah
A Lagos-based businessman, Dominic Essien and his company, Seed Media Limited, were, yesterday, arraigned before a Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja  on a two-count charge of alleged conspiracy to obtain by false pretence, the sum of  N252 million  from telecommunication company,  MTN Nigeria.

The  Economic and Financial crimes commission, EFCC, is prosecuting the accused persons. The alleged office  is contrary to section 1(3) and 8(a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Related Offences Act No14, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2006.

Though Essien  pleaded not to guilty to the charge, he was, however, ordered to be  remanded in  Kirikiri Prison, Lagos, until the hearing of his bail application, while trial judge in the matter, Justice Bisi Akinlade,  adjourned till March 24, 2011.

Defence counsel, had urged the court to remand the accused at the EFCC custody pending the hearing of the bail application, but same was opposed by the EFCC, which argued that the prison custody was the proper place to remand an accused person, once he or she had been formally arraigned in court.

The accused persons in the charge, were alleged to have  sometimes in June 2007 at Lagos within Ikeja Judicial division with intent  to defraud, conspired to obtain the sum of N252 million from MTN Nigeria by falsely representing that the said sum represent the cost of the purchase and stock of loyalty incentives/gifts from TLC Marketing Worldwide International for MTN Nigeria customers.

They were also accused of obtaining with intent to defraud, the sum of N252 million from MN Nigeria by falsely representing that the said sum represent the cost of the purchase and stock of loyalty incentives/gift from TLC Marketing Worldwide International for MTN Nigeria customers, an offence, the prosecution said was contrary to Section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act  N0, 14, laws of the Federation of Nigeria 2006.

AAccording to the charge, MTN Nigeria had in May 10, 2007 entered into a loyalty programme Agency Agreement with Seed Media in which Seed media represented itself as the exclusive licence and franchise holder of TLC Marketing Plc in Nigeria.

However, sometimes in July 2008 MTN Nigeria received information that the money  paid to Seed Media were being misapplied by the company  and Mr Essien in particular.

Under the said agreement, Seed Media was to develop and implement the MTN Loyalty scheme through which MTN Nigeria was to provide loyalty incentives/gifts to MTN subscribers that meet set criteria. The total amount to be paid by MTN Nigeria to Seed Media under the Agreement was N300 million, while MTN Nigeria was expected to make advance payments to Seed media for the purchase of the gifts/rewards to prevent the gifts/rewards from being out of stock.