By Abdulwahab Abdulah
LAGOS— An Assistant Superintendent of Police, Mr.  Chris Attah, yesterday, at the  on-going trial of an official of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Mr. Davis Ibrahim, told an Ikeja High Court presided over by Justice Olubunmi Oyewole, that the official defrauded a woman, Mrs Augusta Eleshin of N55, 000.

Ibrahim, an administrative officer with the EFCC and one Mr Somorin, a cell phone repairer are facing a seven-count charge of conspiracy to obtain money by false pretence, forgery and tendering of false document.

Attah claimed that the two accused persons demanded N5 million from Eleshin to compromise a purported investigation of her husband, adding that Eleshin, who is a Police Inspector, had informed him (Attah) in August 2008 of the petition allegedly given to her by Ibrahim, posing as one Sadiq Bello.

He said: “In the petition which was made on the letter head of the EFCC, they claimed that they were investigating her husband, Saka Odofin, and that she pay them N5 million to stop the investigation.

“I told her that the petition dated 12 August 2008 must be fake because it had no minutes on it. But I told her to play along with them.” Attah added.

He also told the court that he later met with the two accused persons posing as an elder brother to the man who was being investigated and he was also shown another copy of the purported petition, adding that Ibrahim drove them to the EFCC office in Lagos on a weekend to buttress the authenticity of their claims.

“I told him we cannot pay the N5 million they were demanding and asked Eleshin to give them N55, 000 which she had on her,” he explained.

Attah said while he was away in Osun State a few days later, Eleshin called him complaining that the accused persons were still demanding for more money. This, he said prompted him to call his contacts at the EFCC office in Lagos who later arrested them after Eleshin made a written petition against Ibrahim.

Ibrahim’s counsel, E.D. Onyeke during cross-examination disputed Attah’s testimony arguing that it does not corrolate with the account made earlier before the court by Eleshin.