A 38-year-old travel agent, Francis David, was on Tuesday arraigned before a Kaduna Magistrates’ Court for allegedly defrauding a client of N1.3 million under the guise of securing foreign visas.
David, a resident of Nararyi High Cost area of Kaduna, is facing two counts of fraud and stealing.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Prosecutor Inspector Chidi Leo told the court that the defendant collected N1.3 million from one Ms. Jennifer Clement on August 15 at Barnawa, promising to procure three Australian visas and one Kuwait visa but failed to deliver.
Leo alleged that David absconded afterwards and ignored the complainant’s calls, until he was later caught while attempting to defraud another person.
The offences, he said, violate Sections 309 and 217 of the Kaduna State Penal Code, 2017, which prescribes up to seven years imprisonment for stealing.
Magistrate Ibrahim Emmanuel granted the defendant bail in the sum of N500,000 with two sureties in like sum.
The sureties must reside within the court’s jurisdiction, show evidence of three years’ tax payment, and one of them must be a blood relative of the defendant.
The case was adjourned until October 7 for mention.