A Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, has sentenced a man, Taofeek Daniel Oriola, to nine years in prison for money laundering linked to fraudulent cryptocurrency transactions.
The judgment was delivered by Justice Daniel Osiagor after the convict was prosecuted by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on a three-count charge bordering on laundering of illegal funds and concealment of criminal proceeds.
The EFCC told the court that Oriola hid assets believed to have been acquired through fraudulent crypto activities.
One of the charges stated that he disguised the ownership of a 2014 Range Rover (Supercharged), which investigators said was bought with proceeds from illegal cryptocurrency dealings. Another count also accused him of hiding a five-bedroom apartment with a boys’ quarters located in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos, as part of the same alleged fraud scheme.
Court records showed that the offences took place around April 2026 within Lagos State.
During the trial, Oriola pleaded guilty to all charges after they were read to him in court.
Following his plea, EFCC counsel H.U. Kofarnaiza presented evidence and facts of the case, which the court accepted.
In his ruling, Justice Osiagor found him guilty and sentenced him to three years imprisonment on each count. However, the sentences will run concurrently, meaning he will serve them at the same time, bringing the total jail term to nine years.
The court also gave him the option of paying a fine of N200,000 on each count instead of serving the jail term for those specific charges.
In addition, the judge ordered him to perform seven days of community service.
The court further directed that all assets linked to the crime be forfeited to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The forfeited properties include the 2014 Range Rover, the five-bedroom apartment in Ibeju-Lekki, a parcel of land measuring 653.479 square metres in the same area, and an iPhone 16 device.