A 35-year-old travel agent, Alao Ganiyu, on Monday appeared in a Chief Magistrates’ Court in Kaduna for allegedly defrauding a traveller of N1.7 million.
The police charged Ganiyu with three counts of criminal breach of trust, cheating and forgery.
The Prosecutor, Insp. Sunday Baba, told the court that the complainant, Lawal Salami, reported the matter on Oct. 25, through a petition to the Deputy Commissioner of Police State Criminal and Investigation Department.
Baba alleged that sometime in 2019, the defendant promised to secure a visa to the Bahamas for the complainant .
The prosecutor alleged that after collecting the money, the defendant converted it to his personal use and then forged a visa and ticket for the complainant which was rejected at the airport.
Baba said that the offence contravened the provisions of sections 297, 345 and 307 of the Kaduna State Panel Code Law 2017.
After the charge was read to him, the defendant pleaded not guilty.
The Magistrate, Aisha Danja, admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N500,000, with two sureties in like sum.
Danja also ordered that sureties must be reliable and must be resident within the jurisdiction of the court with fixed residential addresses.
The magistrate adjourned the case until Nov. 25 , for hearing.