David Oluchkwu was given a four-month jail sentence as part of efforts to clean up Nigeria by the Lagos State Environmental and Special Offences (Mobile) Court, which is located in Bolade, Oshodi, Lagos. Oluchkwu had pretended to be an officer of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) while extorting money from unwary drivers, particularly commercial bus drivers in the state.
Recall that on December 14, 2022, LASTMA agents caught Oluchkwu, a 27-year-old man, in the act while they were in the Lekki neighborhood of Lagos.
The defendant was then charged by LASTMA with “Conduct likely to cause breach of peace and Impersonation” on two counts before the court where he was found guilty.
Oluchkwu pleaded “Guilty” to the two-count accusation brought against him, and the Magistrate Adesanya Ademola sentenced him to a 4-month jail term without the option of a fine, according to the Director of the LASTMA Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department, Mr. Adebayo Taofiq.
Due to the seriousness of the offenses committed, Magistrate Adesanya emphasizes that the defendant should serve the four months in jail without the option of a fine.
Both of the charges brought against the convict—Breach of Peace and Impersonation—were in violation of Sections 168 (D) and 78 of the Lagos State Criminal Law (2015), according to the prosecutor, Barrister Agbaje Oladotun.
Bolaji Oreagba, the general manager of LASTMA, hailed the decision as a positive step and said it will act as a deterrence to others who continue to defraud innocent bystanders of their money.
“Our surveillance and intelligence team, which has been totally reorganized,” according to Oreagba, “will continue to look for additional negative individuals upsetting the calm of the society on the highways.”
