Lagos court jails man 15 years for N26m Toyota Hilux fraud

A Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja has sentenced a man, Abdulrahman Lawal Raji, to 15 years imprisonment for defrauding a buyer of N26 million under the guise of supplying a Toyota Hilux vehicle.

Justice Ismail Ijelu delivered the judgment on Tuesday, June 2, 2026, after finding Raji guilty of obtaining money by false pretence.

A statement by EFCC said the convict was arraigned by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on November 9, 2023, on an amended two-count charge.

According to the anti-graft agency, Raji collected N26 million from a petitioner, Olaide Ibidapo, for the purchase of a 2022 Toyota Hilux but failed to deliver the vehicle or refund the money.

One of the charges against him read:

“ABDULRAHMAN LAWAL RAJI and ABDULRAHMAN LAWAL (at large), between 20th March, 2023 and 21 March, 2023 at Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, with intent to defraud, obtained a gross sum of N26,000,000 from Olaide Ibidapo by falsely representing it was the purchase price for a Toyota Hilux 2022 car, which representation you knew to be false”.

Raji pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to him.

During the trial, prosecution counsel, Ebuka Okongwu, presented four witnesses and tendered several documents which were admitted as exhibits by the court.

The defence, however, called two witnesses in its case.

Delivering judgment, Justice Ijelu held that the prosecution had successfully established its case beyond reasonable doubt and consequently found the defendant guilty as charged.

The court sentenced Raji to 10 years imprisonment on count one and five years imprisonment on count two, without the option of a fine on either count.

The judge ordered that both sentences should run concurrently.

Justice Ijelu also directed the convict to restitute the sum of N26 million to the petitioner.

Raji’s conviction started from his failure to fulfil an agreement to supply a 2022 Toyota Hilux vehicle after receiving payment from the buyer. Investigations revealed that he neither delivered the vehicle nor returned the money paid for the transaction.