Two men, Sulaiman Inuwa Zakiru and Aliyu Ahmed, were charged before the Kano State High Court for allegedly defrauding a businessman of N12 million by impersonating oil mogul Alhaji A.A. Rano. The suspects pretended to be Alhaji Rano, owner of A.A. Rano Oil and Gas Limited, and tricked the victim into paying for a fake oil allocation
The suspects told the victim that Alhaji Rano would contact him after a supposed visit, and someone purporting to be Alhaji Rano later called the victim to offer petroleum products worth N12 million. The victim was instructed to pay into two accounts: ‘A.A Yansamary General Enterprise’ and ‘Zahda General Enterprise’, allegedly linked to the suspects
The suspects face a two-count charge of conspiracy and obtaining money under false pretenses. The charges state that they conspired to commit an offense by impersonation, contrary to Section 96(1) and punishable under Section 97(1) of the Penal Code Law. Both defendants pleaded not guilty ³.
The prosecution counsel, Zarami Mohammed, requested a trial date and asked that the accused be remanded in custody. Justice Amina Adamu Aliyu adjourned the case to May 22, 2025, for trial and ordered the suspects to be remanded in a correctional facility.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has been actively working to combat financial crimes in Nigeria. The Kano Zonal Directorate of the EFCC has secured convictions in various cases, including a recent conviction for smuggling an undeclared sum of $1,154,900 and SDR135,900 Saudi Riyals