The Police Special Fraud Unit, Ikoyi, Lagos have brought two students – Timothy Fashina Oluwabukola and Anthony Imonina Odemerho – before the Federal High Court in Lagos for allegedly hacking MTN Nigeria Communication’s computers and stealing airtime and data worth N1.9 billion.
Oluwabukola and Odemerho, students of Moshood Abiola Polytechnic (MAPOLY) Abeokuta, Ogun State, and Resign Regal Academy in Benin City, Edo State, were arraigned before Justice Akintayo Aluko, on a four-count charge of conspiracy, unauthorised access into the company’s web-based platform known as Application Programming Interface (API) and unlawful conversion.
The duo, who pleaded not guilty, and others at large, allegedly committed the offence between January and April this year, in Lagos and Edo states.
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Prosecution counsel Justine Enang, alleged that the defendants conspired and accessed the telco’s Application Programming Interface (API) and obtained data from the said application, which they used to defraud MTN to the tune of N1.9 billion.
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He informed the court that the alleged illegal act contravened Section 27(1)(b); 6(2) and 28(1)(b) of the Cybercrime (prohibition, prevention, etc) Act, 2015 as amended in 2024, but punishable under Section 8(2) of the same Act.
He added that the offences contravened section 18(2)(b) of the Money Laundering (Prevention And Prohibition) Act, 2022, punishable under Section 18(3) of the same Act.
The two defendants pleaded not guilty to the four-count charge.
The prosecutor asked for a trial date and urged the court to remand them in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Services (NCoS) till the determination of the charge.
But the defence lawyers informed the court that they had filed their clients’ bail applications.
Justice Aluko adjourned till August 5 for hearing of the defendants’ bail applications.
The charges against the defendants read: “That you, Timothy Fashina Oluwabukola, Anthony Imonina Odemerho and others at large, between January and April, 2024, in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, conspired among yourselves to intentionally and without authorisation, gained access into MTN Nigeria Communications Plc computer system/network, with intent to obtain data from the said computer system/network, which you subsequently used to defraud the company (MTN) to the tune of N1.9billion, and thereby committed an offence, contrary to Section 27(1)(b) of the Cybercrime (prohibition, prevention, etc) Act, 2015 as amended in 2024, but punishable under Section 8(2) of the same Act.
“That you, Timothy Fashina Oluwabukola, Anthony Imonina Odemerho and Others at large, between January and April, 2024, in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, intentionally and without authorisation, accessed the computer system or network of MTN Nigeria Communication Pie through the unlawful use of authorisation keys and passwords to gain access to MTN web-based platform known as Application Programming Interface (API), with intent of obtaining airtime data from the said computer system or network, valued at N1.9billion, which you sold to the public and converted the proceeds of same to your own use and benefit, and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 6(2) of the Cybercrime (prevention, prohibition, etc) Act, 2015 is amended in 2024.’’
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