Dariye said he later approached the official Polo Company for verification, only to learn that the watch was a counterfeit and that the suspects were not affiliated with the company.
Former Plateau State Governor and convicted ex-senator, Chief Joshua Chibi Dariye, has petitioned the Nigeria Police over an alleged fraud involving two men who sold him a fake luxury wristwatch for $290,000.
In a formal complaint dated November 19, 2024, and addressed to the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Force Intelligence Department (FID), Garki Area 11, Abuja, Dariye accused Emmanuel Odogwu and Franklin Gideon (alias Kelvin) of criminal conspiracy, breach of trust, and obtaining money under false pretences.
“I humbly wish to complain against one Emmanuel Odogwa and one Franklin Gideon (aka Kelvin) for Criminal Conspiracy, Breach of Trust, Obtaining Money by False Pretences and Fraud,” Dariye wrote in the petition.
He recounted that in April 2024, the duo, who claimed to be staff members of a luxury watch company, offered him a Polo wristwatch for $290,000.
“I paid them the money and they promised to supply same. They did supply the Polo wrist but I discovered it was fake.”
Dariye said he later approached the official Polo Company for verification, only to learn that the watch was a counterfeit and that the suspects were not affiliated with the company.
“I kindly request your esteemed office to track and arrest the suspects who are currently on the run and to also investigate this matter thoroughly and help recover the $290,000 they fraudulently collected from me,” he pleaded.
In a follow-up police statement dated November 22, 2024, Dariye reiterated that Odogwu and Gideon “collected the sum of $290,000 from me, thereafter they sold me a fake wristwatch.”
He added that his attempts to reach them had failed. “Based on further information, I gathered that the above suspects are high profile fraudsters,” he stated.
The case took a new turn when police investigators identified the real identity of one of the suspects as Franklyn Ojo Jatto.
In an affidavit sworn on February 14, 2025, Gregory Woje of the Legal/Prosecution Section at Force Headquarters confirmed that Dariye’s petition had triggered an investigation.
According to the affidavit, Jatto allegedly converted the $290,000 into ₦250 million through a Bureau de Change and transferred the funds to a Keystone Bank account belonging to his company, Franklyn’s Construction Nig. Ltd.
Investigators further discovered that on April 23, 2024, Jatto used N145 million from the proceeds to purchase a property at Sahara III Estate, Lokogoma, Abuja.
The police also uncovered that Jatto operated over 16 bank accounts across Nigeria and abroad, all linked to a single Biometric Verification Number (BVN).
A freezing order was obtained from the Chief Magistrate Court of the Federal Capital Territory to block these accounts.
Further forensic analysis revealed that Jatto had impersonated a staff member of the Polo wristwatch company under the alias “Kelvin.”
On May 8, 2025, he reportedly transferred N100 million from his Keystone account to Mutual Trust Bank, where it was placed in a fixed deposit set to mature in May 2026.
The police are now seeking an interim forfeiture of the assets acquired with the proceeds of the alleged fraud.
“Unless this Honourable Court grants this application, the Respondent may dispose of the property and spend the proceeds of crime in the bank,” the affidavit warned.
Dariye’s Prior Conviction
Dariye, who served as Plateau State governor from 1999 to 2007 and later became a senator, was prosecuted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for embezzling N1.16 billion in ecological funds meant for the state.
The trial began in 2007 but was delayed for years due to legal challenges. It resumed after the Supreme Court ordered him to face trial in 2015.
He was sentenced to 14 years in prison for breach of trust and 2 years for misappropriation, to run concurrently.
Dariye appealed the judgment. On November 16, 2018, the Court of Appeal reduced his sentence from 14 to 10 years, citing that maximum sentences should not be imposed on first-time offenders under Section 416(2) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.
In March 2021, the Supreme Court upheld the 10-year sentence for criminal breach of trust, but discharged him of the misappropriation charge, which carried a lesser penalty.
In a unanimous judgment, a five-member panel of the Supreme Court, led by Justice Mary Odili, upheld Dariye’s concurrent conviction and sentence by the trial court and the Court of Appeal on the offence of criminal breach of trust.
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