The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has brought charges against Osabohem Alex Ologbosele, the Chief Executive Officer of Lexicon Multiconcept Media Limited, alongside his company and employee Augustine Osas Iyoha.
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They appeared before Justice E. Akpan of the Federal High Court in Abuja. The defendants face six counts of amended charges related to fraud, obtaining by false pretenses, and money laundering, amounting to N459,050,000 (Four Hundred and Fifty-Nine Million, Fifty Thousand Naira). Before the charges were presented, prosecuting counsel O.S. Ujam informed the court of her intent to replace the original charges filed on March 7, 2025, with the amended charges submitted on March 10, 2025.
The court approved this request. The first charge states: "That you, Osabohem Alex Ologbosele, sometime in 2023 and 2024 in Abuja, within the jurisdiction of this Honorable court, directly possessed N340,000,000 (Three Hundred and Forty Million Naira) which was transferred to your account (number 202277****) at Kuda Microfinance Bank from the account of Hope Onome Ogholemu (number 08272******) at Access Bank, knowing or reasonably being expected to know that this amount was part of the proceeds of illegal activities, thus committing an offense under Section 18 (2) (d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022, punishable under Section 18 (3) of the same Act." The second charge states: "That you, Lexicon Multiconcept Media Limited, during 2023 and 2024 in Abuja, within this Honorable court's jurisdiction, directly took possession of N16,000,000 (Sixteen Million Naira) transferred to your account (number 63665292****) at Moniepoint Microfinance Bank from the account of Osabohem Alex Ologbosele (number 2022773919) at Kuda Microfinance Bank, knowing or reasonably being expected to know that this money was part of the proceeds of an unlawful act, thereby committing an offense under Section 18 (2) (d) of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022, punishable under Section 18 (4) of the same Act." The defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Following their plea, Ujam requested an adjournment for the prosecution to present its case and call witnesses. Defense counsel Samuel Ogala raised an application for bail for the first two defendants, filed on March 24, 2025, and a second application for the third defendant, submitted on March 27, 2025, urging the court to grant bail on reasonable terms. In response, Ujam presented a 17-paragraph affidavit dated April 2, 2025, opposing the bail applications. She argued that the defendants posed a flight risk, referencing their failure to report to the EFCC for several months, and expressed concerns they might avoid trial if granted bail. "My lord, the first defendant was arrested in November 2023 and did not report back until February 5, 2025.
I believe that if granted bail, he may not appear for trial," she stated. After hearing arguments from both sides regarding the bail applications, Justice Akpan adjourned the case to May 2, 2025, for a ruling on bail and ordered that the defendants be remanded in Kuje prison.