Justice Josephine Oyefeso of the Lagos State High Court, sitting in Ajah, on Tuesday, June 10, 2025, sentenced Chukwudi Okonkwo Goodness to 74 years in prison for stealing and issuing dud cheques amounting to N360 million.
Goodness was arraigned by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on June 6, 2016, on a 33-count charge bordering on stealing and issuance of dud cheques.
The charges stemmed from his fraudulent conversion of funds belonging to one Henry Nnadike between June and July 2015.
One of the charges read: “That you, Chukwudi Okonkwo Goodness, sometime between the months of June and July, 2015 at Ikeja, within the jurisdiction of the Honorable Court, fraudulently converted and stole the sum of N360,000,000.00 (Three Hundred and Sixty Million Naira), property of one Henry Nnadike and committed an offence of stealing by conversion contrary to Sections 278 and 285 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2011.”
Goodness pleaded not guilty to the charges, prompting a full trial. During the proceedings, EFCC counsel T.J. Banjo called four witnesses and presented various pieces of evidence to support the prosecution’s case.
Delivering her judgment, Justice Oyefeso found the defendant guilty on 32 of the 33 counts.
He was convicted and sentenced as follows: seven years imprisonment for count one (stealing); two years imprisonment each for counts three to thirty-two (issuance of dud cheques); and seven years imprisonment for count 33 (stealing by conversion).
The sentences are to run concurrently, meaning Goodness would spend a total of seven years in prison.
He was, however, discharged and acquitted on count two, which bordered on possession of documents containing false pretence.
The court further ordered him to restitute N215 million to the victim, Henry Nnadike, within 30 days of the judgment adding that he may be considered for a fine thereafter.
Goodness’ conviction comes nearly a decade after his arraignment, bringing closure to a long-running fraud case prosecuted by the anti-graft agency.
