A 39-year-old man, Ezekiel Onikoyi, has been sentenced to two weeks imprisonment by an Iyaganku Magistrate’s Court in Ibadan for stealing a woman’s handbag under the guise of being a prophet.
The convict, whose address was not disclosed, was arraigned on three charges bordering on stealing, obtaining by false pretence, and conduct likely to cause a breach of peace.
He pleaded guilty to all the charges when they were read to him in court.
According to the police prosecutor, Sgt. Samuel Owolabi, the incident occurred on March 14 around 11:30 p.m. at the Old Toll Gate along the Ibadan-Lagos Expressway.
Onikoyi reportedly approached his victim, Mrs. Balikis Adeoti, as she was returning from work and pretended to be a prophet with a divine message for her.
In a deceptive act, he instructed her to drop her handbag and proceed a short distance to pray at a junction, leaving a N100 note at the spot as a spiritual offering.
However, while the unsuspecting woman followed the instruction, the so-called prophet absconded with her bag, which contained a mobile phone, a power bank valued at N220,000, and N4,000 in cash.
The power bank was later recovered from the convict, but the phone and cash were not retrieved.
The offences, according to the prosecution, contravened Sections 390 (9), 419, and 249 (d) of the Criminal Laws of Oyo State, 2000.
In her judgment, Magistrate Gladys Oladele found Onikoyi guilty and sentenced him to two weeks imprisonment at the Agodi Correctional Centre.
However, the court also gave him the option of serving one month of community service as an alternative punishment.
The magistrate further ordered that the recovered power bank be returned to the complainant.