A leading Aba textile dealer, and Managing Director, Odogwu Textiles and Caps West Africa LTD, and Flamingo Gold, Chibueze Ezeike is now has a case of criminal conspiracy and forgery filed against him at the Abia State High Court sitting in Aba.
As gathered, the presiding Judge Justice Chibuzo Ahuchaogu on Tuesday February 25,2025 adjourned proceedings to March 18, 2025 in case against Ezeike who is also Managing Director of Work and Chop Multi-Venture Nigeria LTD.
The popular fabric dealer (Ezeike) was arraigned on Tuesday, alongside one Chinedu Chukwu, his employee, on a two count charge, bordering on forgery and threat to life.
It was gathered that Ezike, one of the three leading dealers on traditional Igbo fabrics “Isiagu” in Aba together with Chukwu, his employee, pleaded not guilty to the charges brought against them.
Our correspondent reports that in count one, Ezike, alongside Chinedu Chukwu, his employee, were said to have conspired to commit felony to wit forgery contrary to Section 467 of the criminal Code.
This news site reports that the prosecution had specifically alleged that the accused between February 26, and 29, 2024 at Ariaria International Market Aba, fraudulently make, sign, and execute a receipt with name P.S. Ezeagu & Sons Resources by inserting “Odogwu Odogwu Design” in the said receipt with receipt number 1217 intending to cause it to be believed that such document was made, signed, sealed or executed by the authority of one Chinedu Ezeagu (Nominal Complaint).
Facts of the story shows that the Compliant, who is also the Managing Director of P.S. Ezeagu and Sons, one of the top three Igbo Traditional Fabrics Dealers in Aba, had in a petition to the police in February 2024, alleged forgery of his Company’s official receipts and threat to his life by Ezeike.
Ezeagu in his petition said that, in February 2024, he was contacted by one Matthew Eze, who is also engaged in the same business of textile materials, to act as his witness in a case involving him and Ezeike the accused in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory.
Ezeagu equally said that his decision to act as Eze’s witness never went down well with the accused, who thereafter engaged in a series of plots to undermine and rope him into trouble.
Ezeagu alleged that for Ezeike to achieve what he termed “his evil intentions”, he, Ezeike sent someone to his business premises at the Ariaria International Market Aba, to purchase four yards of his company’s brand of Igbo Traditional Fabrics “Full Lion Cream Material.”
He said that in a shocking method, Ezeike’s emissary made a strange request that his worker at Ariaria International Market should write on the receipt “Odogwu Odogwu”, the brand name of Ezeike’s Igbo Traditional Materiel.
According to him, his worker rejected the request, because their company only deal on “Full Lion Cream Brand” and not Odogwu Odogwu Design.
Ezeagu alleged that Ezeike, having failed in the first attempt to romp in his company, once again sent one of his workers, one Chnedu Chukwu, on the same alleged sinister mission.
He said that similar to the first attempt, his workers refused entreaties from Chukwu for the brand name “Odogwu Odogwu” to be written on the receipt for him.
He, however, alleged that Chukwu on this second mission bought two yards of the “Full Lion Cream” material.
Ezeagu alleged that in a serious determination to achieve his evil intentions against him, Ezeike and his worker Chukwu thereafter conspired and ingenuously inserted on the receipt legitimately issued to him for the purchase made, “Odogwu Odogwu Design.”
According to a part of the police investigative reports, “At the end of the day the suspect carefully inserted ‘Odogwu Odogwu’ in front of the ‘Full Lion Cream’ on the said receipt issued, and use same to file a process in Court castigating and calling the petitioner a part of the syndicate which are unlawfully imitating his goods (brand).
As gathered, in his statement to the police investigation team, the accused (Ezeike), admitted sending Chinedu Chukwu to buy two yards of materials in the petitioner’s shop, with receipt number 1217 dated February 29,2024 issued.
According to him, the intention was to confirm earlier reports, suggesting that Ezeagu and his company, has been faking his goods, insisting that the receipt issued to his worker, Chinedu Chukwu, by the complainant’s staff, was written with the name “Full Lion Cream Odogwu Odogwu Design”, a development that confirmed that they were imitating his brand.
According to the police report, this claim by the suspect was said to have prompted the investigation team to seek a forensic analysis of the handwritings in the said receipt.
“On the 25th June, 2024, a letter was written to the Commissioner of Police Forensic and Crime data, Alagbon Lagos to analyze if it is the same person who wrote,”Full Lion Cream” and “Odogwu Odogwu Design” on the receipt number 1217, dated 29th February, 2024.
This medium reports that on the 20th August, 2024, a report from Forensic Laboratory, FCID Alagbon Lagos dated 4th July 2024, was received and which stated in its opinion that the writer of the “Full Lion Cream, did not write the “Odogwu Odogwu Design”, as claimed by the suspect.
Based on the findings, the investigation team in its report signed by Etim G. Effiong, a Deputy Commissioner of Police DCP, on behalf of the Commissioner of Police CP (PSFU) FCID, concluded that a prima facie case of forgery has been established against the suspect Ezeike.
“In view of the above observation, and by virtue of the report of Forensic and Crime Data Analysis conducted on the handwriting written on the invoice/sales receipt No 1217, dated 29th February, 2024, a prima facie offence of criminal conspiracy, forgery ,and threat to life has been established against the suspect (Chinedu Ezeike) and Chinedu Chukwu subject to prosecution,” the police reported noted..
Presiding Judge, Justice Chibuzo Ahuchaogu, while earlier ruling on a bail application filed by the lead defence counsel, E C Uzoatu granted the accused bail to the tune of N10 million, with a surety who must be an owner of property with valid documents in Aba
The prosecution counsel C. G Korie, an Assistant Director in the Abia state Ministry of Justice, had opposed the bail application, because the accused ever since his bail by the police, has been intimidating, and threatening the nominal complainant, as well as engaging in many subtle moves to debar witnesses from testifying in the matter.
