An 82-year-old man has been sentenced to 12 years in prison following his conviction on multiple counts of forgery and conspiracy by the Delta State High Court sitting in Asaba.
On Wednesday, March 18, 2026, the elderly man was sentenced after a long court trial in which he was accused of fabricating official documents and land titles to enable the illicit sale of communal ancestral lands worth several million naira. The presiding judge insisted that the seriousness of the “premeditated and systematic” nature of the fraud necessitated a sentence that would serve as a deterrent to others involved in the widespread land racketeering currently affecting the South-South region, despite his advanced age and requests for leniency from his legal team.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which had been investigating a syndicate that specialized in “cloning” the signatures of deceased community leaders to verify fake deeds of gift, conducted a thorough investigation that resulted in the conviction.
The convict was the mastermind behind a network that successfully tricked a number of gullible investors, including members of the Nigerian diaspora, into thinking they were buying legitimate properties in strategic locations throughout Asaba and Warri, according to forensic evidence presented during the trial.
The court determined that the 82-year-old had used his extensive understanding of local history and administrative processes to give his falsified documents a “veneer of authenticity,” which the judge deemed to be especially “reprehensible” considering his position as an elder in his community.
Legal professionals and human rights activists in Delta State have been debating the 12-year sentence in great detail. Some have questioned the wisdom of locking up someone so old for a non-violent financial offense.
Some have called for a review of the sentence to include non-custodial options or a transfer to a specialized geriatric medical facility within the correctional system, while the EFCC has praised the ruling as a victory for the rule of law and a warning to “white-collar criminals” regardless of their age.
