Lagos Court Sentences Notorious Fraudster Nwude, Lawyers to One-Year Jail Term

Justice Mojisola Dada of the Special Offences Court in Ikeja, Lagos, convicted and sentenced infamous fraudster Emmanuel Nwude alongside his lawyers, Emmanuel Ilechukwu and Rowland Kalu, to one year in prison each on March 11, 2026. The trio faced an amended 15-count charge filed on March 2, 2018, including conspiracy, forgery, uttering false documents, dealing in forfeited property, attempting to pervert justice, and fabricating evidence. All defendants pleaded not guilty, sparking a protracted trial that spanned over seven years.

Prosecutor Nnaemeka Omewa presented five witnesses and key documents, closing the case on March 19, 2019. Nwude and his counsel filed a no-case submission, which Justice Dada rejected on September 19, 2019, prompting an appeal (CA/LAG/CR/1244/2019) that the Court of Appeal dismissed, ordering defense proceedings. Nwude opened his defense on February 22, 2021, testifying personally with three witnesses; his lawyers followed suit, closing on February 27, 2025.

Final addresses dragged into mid-2025, with adjournments to June 25, then September 25, and November 5 amid procedural hitches, including a failed takeover bid by Lagos State DPP Dr. Babajide Martins on a petition from Ilechukwu. The court convicted them on 13 counts (1-6, 9-15) but acquitted on counts 7-8 for false statements to officials.​

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The case traces to a 2017 EFCC petition, linking back to Nwude’s infamous 1990s $242 million “fake Abuja airport” scam against Brazil’s Banco Noroeste, where he posed as Central Bank Governor Paul Ogwuma. In 2005, Justice J.O.K. Oyewole ordered Nwude’s properties, including Plot Y, Mobolaji Johnson Street, Oregun (owned by his firm Emrus Auto Nigeria Ltd.), forfeited as restitution; victims sold it to Rosaab Industrial Design Ltd., later assigned to G.C. Nweze & Co.

Post-release, Nwude enlisted Ilechukwu and Kalu to reclaim it fraudulently. Kalu, via a forged Power of Attorney under “Mankris Ventures Ltd.,” secured a Magistrate Court ejection order at Ogba; Ilechukwu enforced it with sheriffs and police. Nweze contested it as fraud, exposing petitions and suits that triggered EFCC probe and charges (ID/6407C/2017).

This marks another chapter for Nwude, once EFCC’s landmark conviction in Nigeria’s anti-graft war, underscoring persistent efforts to reclaim scam proceeds despite legal hurdles.