The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, arraigned the operator of McHarvey Capital Limited, Benjamin Okenna Ikaa, and two others, Chidera Jonas and Ikaa Ejike Benjamin, before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court, Maitama, Abuja, on Wednesday, December 6, 2023.
According to an EFCC statement, the trio is facing four counts of obtaining by false pretence and money laundering in a crypto-currency investment fraud totaling $1,621,352, (One Million, Six Hundred and Twenty-One Thousand, Three Hundred and Fifty-Two United States Dollars).
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One of the charges is as follows:
“That you Benjamin Okenna Ikaa (alias George; Gavrilovich; P.Aleksandra and Aaron Griffin), Chidera Jonas (at large) and Ikaa Ejike Benjamin (at large) on or about 20th December 2022 at Ugbowa, Abakpa Nike, Enugu, Enugu State within the jurisdiction of this honourable court with intent to defraud, did send electronic messages which materially misrepresent facts in your website http://mcharveycapital.com about cryptocurrency investment to one Monica Garcia upon which she relied and suffered financial loss in the sum of $1,501, 0352,000 (One Million, Five Hundred and One Thousand, Three Hundred and Fifty-Two United States Dollars) and thereby committed an offence contrary to and punishable under Section 14(2) of the Cybercrime (Prohibition Prevention etc.) Act 2015.”
When the allegations were read to Ikaa, the only defendant in court, he pled not guilty. Following that, prosecution attorney Bamidele Akanmode requested a trial date and that the defendant be held in the EFCC’s custody pending the conclusion of a plea deal with him, while defence counsel Adachi Abel requested a brief adjournment.
The defendant was remanded in Kuje Correctional Centre by Justice Nwite, who also adjourned the case till December 13, 2023.
Benjamin Ikaa, Chidera Jonas, and Ikaa Benjamin, the three defendants, scammed their naïve victims by promising them mouth-watering daily profits in crypto-currency investment on social media platforms.
