Court admits FBI’s report claiming Mompha used iPhone for alleged N6bn fraud

The Lagos State Special Offences Court, Ikeja, on Monday, admitted as evidence two documents tendered by the prosecution in the trial of social media celebrity, Ismaila Mustapha aka Mompha, for alleged N6 billion fraud.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) agent, Mr. Ayotunde Solademi, tendered the report on behalf of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) at the resumed hearing on the case in Ikeja.

The documents are a report by the FBI and an investigative report on Mompha’s iPhone which the agency claims was used for fraudulent activities.

The witness was led in evidence by EFCC counsel, Mr. Suleiman Suleiman.

The defence counsel, Mr. Kolawole Salami, who objected to the admissibility of the two documents in evidence, argued that they were public documents and must first be certified by the United States Consulate.

He said: “The documents are not certified true copies and should not be admitted in court.”

Justice Mojisola Dada, however, overruled him and upheld the submission of prosecution counsel who insisted that the FBI documents were original.

“The documents do not require certification,” Dada said.

Solademi, who works at the Legal Attaché Office of the FBI in Nigeria, had informed the court that he retrieved an iPhone belonging to Mompha with a Faraday bag.

He said that the FBI’s forensic operations revealed that the defendant’s iPhone was used to send account details to a United Arab Emirates (UAE) telephone number, searched for swift codes of a bank, and had a compromised Microsoft 365 account.

The witness further told the court that the FBI discovered during analysis that Mompha’s iPhone was also used to change payment delivery from cheque to wire transfer.

He said: “The iPhone had a compromised Microsoft 365 account, and attackers used a fraudulent domain to socially engineer communication to Mompha’s company.

READ ALSO: Alleged money laundering: EFCC arrests social media celebrity, Mompha

“The iPhone was used to make three attempts to transfer funds. The first two failed, but the third was successful,” Solademi said.

Mompha’s trial started on June 3 when a compliance officer with Access Bank testified against him.

The prosecution informed the court on May 15 that it had secured the defendant’s arrest in collaboration with its international partners.

The EFCC had on January 22 arraigned Mompha alongside his company, Ismalob Global Investment Limited, on an eight-count charge of money laundering.

The court on June 22 issued a bench warrant for his arrest following his absence in court.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now