A Lagos State Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja has adjourned judgment in the N960m, investment fraud case involving Edu Hub Consults Limited and its Managing Director, Mma Anyanso, to November 21, 2025.

Justice Mojisola Dada on Wednesday fixed the date after she was informed of a plea bargain entered by the defendant.

Anyanso is standing trial on an amended charge of stealing and obtaining money under false pretence. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission accused him and his company of diverting investors’ funds meant for legitimate business purposes to personal use.

The amended charge, dated August 21 2025,and filed on September 29, 2025, alleged that between July 18 and September 14, 2020, Edu Hub Consults Limited dishonestly converted N960 m, belonging to investors under the guise of a profitable investment scheme.

The alleged offences contravene Section 278(1)(b)(ii) of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

The EFCC further claimed that the defendants used part of the funds to acquire luxury properties, including an apartment at Eko Atlantic City, Lagos.

An EFCC operative, Chinedu Peters, attached to the Commission’s Cybercrime Section, testified that the agency received credible intelligence in 2020 about suspicious investment activities operating from Eko Atlantic City, Victoria Island.

Acting on this information, investigators visited the location and arrested several suspects, including Anyanso.

Peters told the court that the defendant voluntarily admitted being the Managing Director of Edu Hub Consults Limited and, The Map Online Limited, both of which collected money from members of the public under the pretext of investment opportunities.

He added that a letter sent to the Securities and Exchange Commission confirmed that neither company was licensed to receive or manage investment funds from the public.

Investigations, according to him, revealed that Edu Hub Consults Limited and, The Map Online Limited received various sums from over 2,300 investors, promising high returns based on the investment category.

The EFCC operative said the scheme collapsed after a few months of payouts, and the funds were diverted for personal use, including purchasing properties in Lagos and Abuja.

Peters also testified that while on administrative bail, the defendant made partial restitution to about 945 investors but still owed approximately N1.2 bn.

He added that Anyanso later wrote to the EFCC expressing willingness to enter into a plea bargain, in a letter dated September 29, 2025.

The prosecution urged the court to convict the defendant, insisting that the evidence established deliberate fraudulent conduct.

However, defence counsel, Dr. Suleiman Usman (SAN), pleaded for leniency, arguing that the defendant acted in good faith and had cooperated with investigators.

“The defendant believed the business was genuine,” Usman said.

“He has made substantial efforts to refund investors and surrendered properties to offset the outstanding balance.”

He urged the court to temper justice with mercy and consider a non-custodial sentence.

After listening to both counsel, Justice Dada adjourned the case until November 21, 2025, for judgment.

Justice Rahman Oshodi of the Special Offences Court sitting in Ikeja, Lagos, on Wednesday, convicted and sentenced one Samuel Asiegbu to three years’ imprisonment without an option of fine for his role in an N8.56bn fraud carried out at Wema Bank Nigeria Plc.

Asiegbu was arraigned alongside Hamza Zakaria, Nurudeen Ibrahim, and Alhaji Sulaiman (now at large) on four counts bordering on conspiracy, stealing, and unauthorised access to a computer system, preferred against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

The defendants were first arraigned on June 23, 2025, and had initially pleaded not guilty.

However, Asiegbu later changed his plea to guilty, leading to his conviction and sentencing, while the trial continues for the other defendants.

The EFCC told the court that Asiegbu, Hamza Zakaria, Nurudeen Ibrahim, Alhaji Sulaiman (at large), and others at large, sometime in January 2025, conspired amongst themselves without authorisation and accessed the computer systems of Wema Bank Nigeria Plc to steal money.

The prosecution counsel also told the court that the convicts, Hamza Zakaria, Nurudeen Ibrahim, Alhaji Sulaiman (at large), and others at large, sometime in January 2025, had unauthorised access to the Wema Bank computer and server with the intent to facilitate the stealing of an aggregate sum of N8,568,090,500 from accounts domiciled at Wema Bank Nigeria Plc.

According to the prosecution counsel, the offences committed contravened Sections 409 and 386 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.

In his judgment, Justice Oshodi sentenced Asiegbu to 10 months and eight days’ imprisonment on count three and 1 year and 8 months on count four, both without an option of fine.

The judge held that the sentences are to run concurrently, bringing his total jail term to three years.

The court also struck out counts one and two.

Consequently, Justice Oshodi adjourned the case to November 14, 2025, for further trial of the remaining defendants.