4th September, 2024
By Oluwapelumi Oluwayemi
A federal high court sitting in Lagos has sentenced Courage Ipaka, who impersonated popular singer Flavour, to two years in prison for defrauding a U.S.-based woman out of $53,000.
Ipaka, a resident of Benin City, was found guilty of using Flavour‘s identity to deceive Yvelte M. Thompson, a U.S. citizen. He promised to organize shows in the U.S. and received payments through Bitcoin wallets.
Azibagiri Dan Ekpar, an investigator with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), led the investigation into Ipaka’s activities. Ekpar revealed that the fraud came to light after a petition was filed by Eyitayo Tolulope Abiodun and others on behalf of Thompson.
“Upon receiving the petition, we invited Flavour, who was found to be innocent of the allegations,” Ekpar explained. “Our investigation revealed that Ipaka had impersonated Flavour to obtain $53,000 from Thompson in 2021. He transferred the funds through Bitcoin wallets and later converted them into Nigerian Naira, which was deposited into his Access Bank account.”
The EFCC successfully recovered N7.9 million from Ipaka, which was traced through Zenith and Access Bank manager’s cheques.
Presiding Judge Dehinde Dipeolu sentenced Ipaka to two years imprisonment with an option of a N2 million fine. In addition, Ipaka has been ordered to forfeit the recovered sum of N7.9 million to Thompson.
