By Nkechi Eze
The Lagos State High Court sitting in Ikeja has convicted and fined a 55-year-old man, John Nwawuto Anoruo, N270,000 for impersonation and the use of a forged Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) seal.
Justice A.M. Lawal convicted Anoruo on Tuesday, August 4, 2026, after he pleaded guilty to a two-count charge brought against him by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 2 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
According to an official statement signed by Dele Oyewale, Head of Media and Publicity of the EFCC, Anoruo, who operated a legal and educational consultancy in Ikorodu, Lagos, was arrested by the commission on April 20, 2026, following investigations into his alleged impersonation of a legal practitioner.
The case originated from a petition dated September 22, 2025, which Anoruo submitted to the EFCC on behalf of his clients against the management of Global West Vessel Specialist Nigeria Limited.
Investigations subsequently revealed that the petition and a letter of withdrawal dated March 5, 2026, bore a forged NBA seal, which Anoruo admitted obtaining from an undisclosed business centre in Lagos.
During investigations, the defendant claimed to have obtained a law degree from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, in 2018 through evening classes but admitted that he had not attended the Nigerian Law School.
One of the charges alleged that Anoruo fraudulently used a counterfeit NBA seal bearing Supreme Court enrolment number SCN037400, intending that it be accepted as genuine, contrary to the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
The second count accused him of falsely presenting himself to the EFCC as a duly certified legal practitioner entitled to practise law in Nigeria and of using an NBA seal bearing the enrolment number of another lawyer.
Following his guilty plea, prosecution counsel, Saadatu Mahmud Yabo, called an EFCC investigating officer, Umar Faruk Ahmad, to present the facts of the case.
Ahmad told the court that the commission received a petition on April 15, 2026, from a legal practitioner, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika, alleging that Anoruo had filed a petition against him and his law firm while falsely claiming to be a lawyer.
The investigating officer said checks revealed that the Supreme Court enrolment number on the seal belonged to another legal practitioner. He added that Anoruo admitted obtaining the counterfeit seal and confirmed that he had not been called to the Nigerian Bar.
Ahmad further disclosed that the defendant received N7.5 million for the legal brief in question, out of which he paid N1.5 million to a qualified lawyer to handle the matter on his behalf.
The witness also told the court that Anoruo appeared at the EFCC office wearing legal practitioner’s attire when he honoured the commission’s invitation. A subsequent search of his residence led to the recovery of the forged NBA seal bearing another lawyer’s enrolment number.
The prosecution tendered several exhibits, including the petition against Anoruo, his extra-judicial statement, correspondence with the Body of Benchers and the Supreme Court of Nigeria, the recovered legal attire, the counterfeit seal and a N300,000 bank draft paid into the EFCC’s recovery account.
The defence counsel, G.E. Demkemefa, did not object to the admissibility of the exhibits, which Justice Lawal admitted and marked as Exhibits 1 to 9.
During his plea for leniency, Anoruo told the court that he had paid N2.5 million to the individual who introduced the legal brief to him and N1.5 million to the lawyer he engaged to handle the matter.
Prosecution counsel urged the court to convict and sentence him in line with his guilty plea and also sought the forfeiture of the exhibits to the Federal Government.
Delivering judgment, Justice Lawal held that the defendant was convicted on both counts in view of his plea.
Defence counsel subsequently pleaded for mercy, describing Anoruo as a first-time offender who had not wasted the time of the court or the EFCC. He also told the court that the defendant was the breadwinner of a family comprising his wife and five children, urging the judge to impose fines instead of a custodial sentence.
The court sentenced Anoruo to a fine of N120,000 on the first count and N150,000 on the second, bringing the total to N270,000, payable to the Lagos State Judiciary.
Justice Lawal also ordered that the recovered legal practitioner’s attire and forged NBA seal be forfeited to the Federal Government through the EFCC.
