By Egufe Yafuborghi & Chioma Onuegbu
UYO – The Federal High Court in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, presided over by Justice Sergius Onah, has sentenced Oguzie Chima Joseph, also known as Sergeant Flores Nguyen, to two years imprisonment for internet fraud.
According to a statement released Tuesday evening, Joseph was prosecuted by the Uyo Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on two counts of cybercrime-related offenses.
The statement, signed by EFCC’s Head of Media & Publicity, Dele Oyewale, noted that Joseph was sentenced on Monday, March 24, 2025.
Count One: “That you, Oguzie Chima Joseph (a.k.a Sergeant Flores Nguyen), sometime in 2024, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, fraudulently presented yourself as a United States Army officer, Sergeant Flores Nguyen, on Facebook with intent to obtain property and gain advantage for yourself. This act contravenes Section 22 (2) (b)(0) of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) (Amendment) Act 2024 and is punishable under Section 22 (b) (iv) of the same Act.”
Count Two: “That you, Oguzie Chima Joseph (a.k.a Sergeant Flores Nguyen), sometime in 2024, knowingly took possession of $100 (One Hundred United States Dollars), which you reasonably ought to know was derived from cybercrime, thereby committing an offense contrary to Section 18 (2) (d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022, and punishable under Section 18 (3) of the same Act.”
Joseph pleaded guilty when the charges were read to him on Monday, March 10, 2025. Following his plea, prosecution counsel Khamis Mahmud presented evidence, including: A written statement by the defendant, An iPhone XR mobile device and Printouts of fraudulent documents retrieved from his phone
On March 24, 2025, Justice Onah convicted Joseph on both counts and ruled: “The prosecution has presented sufficient evidence before this Honourable Court, and with the defendant’s guilty plea, I find Oguzie Chima Joseph guilty as charged.”
He was sentenced to one year imprisonment on each count, to run concurrently, with an option of a N200,000 fine. Additionally, he must restitute the $100 he fraudulently obtained.
Furthermore, the judge ordered the forfeiture of his iPhone XR mobile device to the government as proceeds of crime.
Joseph was arrested on December 6, 2024, by EFCC investigators in Uyo, following credible intelligence linking him to internet fraud. Investigations revealed that he used fictitious social media accounts to lure and defraud victims.
The post A’IBOM: Court sentences internet fraudster to two years appeared first on Vanguard News.
