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2009-03-17 14:01:27
Mon Mar 16, 1:59 pm ET
LAGOS (Reuters) A Nigerian undergraduate has been sentenced to 19 years in
prison for obtaining $47,000 (33,382 pounds) from an Australian woman by
convincing her over the Internet that he was 57 years old, white, and madly in
love with her.
Lawal Adekunle Nurudeen met his victim on the Internet in 2007 and convinced
her that he was a British widower called Benson Lawson. He said he was an
engineer working in Lagos whose wife and only child had been killed in a car
accident.
"The victim, a 56-year-old woman from Australia, told the convict that she
wanted a husband and all the men she had met always disappointed her," said the
Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Nigeria's anti-corruption
police.
"The convict, who is married with three children, instantly replied and told
the victim she had met her Mr Right ... He sent the picture of a white man to
foreclose any suspicions."
The woman sent Nurudeen money for medical treatment and travel costs to visit
Australia. He spent the funds on two plots of land and a Honda Prelude car.
Nigerian confidence tricksters have a long history of extorting money via the
Internet through "419" scams, named after the clause that outlaws them in
Nigeria's penal code. Many are never caught.
The EFCC said Nurudeen was ordered to pay around $10,000 immediately and a
further $250 a month to his victim until the full amount stolen was returned.
She would also receive the proceeds of the sale of his land and car.
(Editing by Mark Trevelyan)
(For full Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues,
visit: http://af.reuters.com/ )
(Reporting by Nick Tattersall)