EFCC arraigns Nigerian-American over alleged $680,000 luxury vehicle fraud

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned a Nigerian-American, Oluwatobi Adegoke, before a Lagos State Special Offences Court over an alleged vehicle purchase fraud involving hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Adegoke was arraigned on Thursday, October 8, 2026, before Justice Olubunmi Abike-Fadipe of the Special Offences Court, sitting in Ikeja, on a one-count charge bordering on stealing.

The EFCC said the defendant’s arrest followed investigations into an alleged cross-border vehicle import fraud involving more than $320,000, equivalent to approximately ₦434.88 million, according to the commission’s account.

However, the charge presented before the court alleged that Adegoke dishonestly converted $680,000 belonging to a complainant, Ikechukwu Osita Ifeabunike, to his personal use.

According to the EFCC, the case originated in July 2026, when operatives of its Ilorin Zonal Directorate arrested Adegoke over allegations that he was involved in a syndicate operating from the United States and targeting Nigerians under the guise of purchasing and importing vehicles.

Preliminary investigations allegedly linked the defendant to a group suspected of defrauding prospective buyers who sought to purchase luxury vehicles from the United States.

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The commission alleged that while residing in the US, Adegoke advertised and circulated photographs of a 2024 Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG to prospective Nigerian buyers, claiming he could purchase and ship the luxury vehicle to them.

Investigators further alleged that two victims paid a combined sum exceeding $320,000 in connection with the transactions.

The one-count charge, however, specifically referred to a transaction involving a 2022 G-Wagon and an alleged transfer of $680,000 into the bank account of Adegoke’s company, Omosco Auto Sales LLC.

The charge stated that Adegoke allegedly committed the offence in December 2024 in Lagos, within the Ikeja judicial division, by dishonestly converting the money belonging to Ifeabunike, which had been transferred to the company’s account for the purchase of the vehicle from an individual identified as Mr Robinson.

Following the defendant’s plea, EFCC counsel, Arazeem Adebayo, urged the court to adjourn the matter for trial and order that Adegoke be remanded in a correctional facility.

Defence counsel, Olalekan Abiodun, had earlier raised an objection to the arraignment, but the court overruled the objection.

Abiodun subsequently applied for his client to be remanded in EFCC custody pending the filing of a bail application. The court also rejected that request.

Justice Abike-Fadipe consequently ordered that Adegoke be remanded at the Kirikiri Correctional Centre.

The court adjourned the case until January 13, 2027, for trial.

The EFCC’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, disclosed the development in a statement dated October 12, 2026.