Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke of the Federal High Court, sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, has remanded a Ponzi scheme operator, Adonu Kingsley Ifeanyi, at the correctional facility pending the determination of his bail application over a N10 billion money laundering case.
The Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Thursday, June 19, 2025, arraigned Ifeanyi before the court.
Adonu was arraigned on a five count-charge of money laundering to the tune of N10 Billion.
EFCC Case
The Commission accused the defendant of unlawfully taking people’s funds through the scheme.
One of the counts reads: ”That you ADONU KINGSLEY IFEANYI between 4″ June, 2021 and 23 July, 2021, in Lagos within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court did take possession of the total sum of N1,076,337,842 (One Billion, Seventy Six Million, Three Hundred and Thirty Seven Thousand, Eight Hundred and Forty Two Naira) through a bank account with account name ‘S. Mobile Netzone Limited’ domiciled in Fidelity Bank Plc., which sum you knew forms part of the proceeds of your unlawful activity to wit: stealing and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 15 (2) (d) of the Money Laundering Prohibition Act, 2011 as amended and punishable under Section 15 (3) of the same Act.”
What transpired in court
At the court session, the defendant pleaded “not guilty” to the charges when they were read to him.
Following his plea, the prosecution counsel, S.I. Suleiman, asked for a trial date and urged the court to remand him in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Services, NCoS, pending commencement of trial.
Responding, the defense counsel, Chibuike Opara, asked the court to remand his client in the facility of the EFCC, pending the filing and determination of his bail application.
Suleiman, however, “opposed the application on the grounds that the appropriate custody of a defendant upon arraignment is the Correctional Center.”
After hearing from the lawyers, Justice Aneke ordered that the defendant be remanded at the Ikoyi center of the Nigerian Correctional Services NCoS.
The matter was then adjourned to July 4, 2025, for hearing of the bail application.
What you should know
The development highlights the EFCC’s prosecution of Ponzi scheme suspects.
On June 17, 2025, the EFCC Port Harcourt Zonal Directorate arraigned Precious Williams, a director of Glossolalia Nigeria Ltd and Pelegend Nigeria Ltd, over an alleged N13.8 billion Ponzi scheme fraud.
The arraignment took place before Justice S.I. Mark of the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
Williams is facing a 14-count charge bordering on conspiracy, obtaining money under false pretences, advance fee fraud, and money laundering.
