A chief magistrate’s court in Pankshin, Plateau, on Monday sentenced Daniel Anichukwu, 35, to one year in the correctional center for cheating a Point of Sale (POS) operator of N50,000.
Anichukwu, who resides at De-Garden Guest Inn, Pankshin, had at his arraignment pleaded not guilty to the charge of cheating.
Delivering her judgment, the Chief Magistrate, Yebo Dabup, held that the prosecution had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt and convicted the defendant of the charge.
The chief magistrate, however, granted the convict a fine of N300,000 in lieu of the one-year term in the correctional centre.
Dabup also ordered Anichukwu to pay N60,000 compensation to the nominal complainant, Miss Beritmwa Kassam, the POS operator.
Earlier, during the trial, the Prosecutor, PC Daniel Success had told the court that Anichukwu was convicted and sentenced to six months in jail by a sister court for a similar offence.
Success said that the convict approached the POS stand of Kassam on June 12 to carry out a cash withdrawal.
The prosecutor said that Anichukwu first made a successful withdrawal of N15,000 before requesting for another N50,000.
He said that Kassam handed the N50,000 cash to Anichukwu without confirming whether the second transaction was successful, having observed that the first transaction had gone through.
“She, however, realised after Anichukwu had left that the second transaction had failed,” Success said.
The prosecutor said that the offence committed contravened and was punishable under Section 307 of the Plateau Penal Code Law, 2017.
