A man who paraded himself as a lawyer and practiced for more than 11 years as a barrister and solicitor has been arrested by men of the Ebonyi State Police Command after allegedly duping one of his ‘clients.’
The man, whose name was given as Ugwumba Francis Enyinnaya, even had in his possession fake Bachelor of Law and Master of Law degree certificates.
He was arrested following an investigation by operatives of the command after a petition bordering on obtaining money by false pretence was received by the command.
According to the petition, the man allegedly collected the sum of ₦650,000 from one Mr Chukwu David in March 2026 to facilitate the processing and approval for the naming of a street in Ohaozara Local Government Area after him.
The petitioner alleged that the man presented himself as a lawyer with years of legal experience, collected the money from him and disappeared since then before the long arm of the law eventually caught up with him.
Following his arrest, investigations by the police revealed that he had been parading himself as a legal practitioner for more than 11 years.
“During interrogation, the suspect admitted that he was not a lawyer. A search of his apartment led to the recovery of several exhibits, including a Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) seal; a portrait of the suspect dressed in lawyer’s regalia; purported Bachelor of Laws (LL.B.) and Master of Laws (LL.M.) degree certificates bearing the name of Enugu State University of Science and Technology; a lawyer’s robe and wig; judgments allegedly procured from the courts and various legal documents allegedly prepared by him, including powers of attorney and deeds of conveyance,” the command said in a statement on Tuesday, October 27.
The man was said to have given more useful information to the police operatives and after the conclusion of the investigation, he was charged to court.
