The Oyo State High Court sitting in Ibadan has sentenced Olaniyan Gbenga Amos, the Chief Executive Officer of Detorrid Heritage Investment Limited, to 63 years imprisonment for multiple counts of investment-related fraud.
Justice Olusola Adetujoye handed down the sentence on Monday, April 28, 2025, following Amos’ conviction on nine of the 30-count charges filed against him by the Ibadan Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The charges bordered on obtaining money under false pretences, in violation of Section 1(1)(a) and punishable under Section 1(3) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.
According to a statement by Dele Oyewale, Head of Media and Publicity at the EFCC, Amos was found guilty of deceiving multiple investors into paying substantial sums under the guise of high-yield investment opportunities, particularly with a fake promise of 30% returns in six weeks through a company called Crime Alert Security Network.
One of the charges, Count 21, stated: “That you Olaniyan Gbenga Amos and Detorrid Heritage Investment Limited on or about 18th of June, 2020, at Ibadan, with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of N995,000 from Bada Titilope, under the false pretext of investment with a promise of 30% return in 30 working days.” Similar fraudulent claims were made to other victims, including Onifade Isaac Olawale, who was defrauded of N920,000.
Amos had pleaded not guilty when the charges were first read. However, after a lengthy trial that began on February 17, 2022, during which the EFCC called eight witnesses and presented various exhibits, the court rejected the defendant’s no-case submission and compelled him to open his defence. He eventually testified for himself and on behalf of his firm on October 17, 2024.
Justice Adetujoye sentenced Amos to seven years on each of counts 6, 16, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 23, and 24, totaling 63 years. The sentences are to run concurrently. He was discharged and acquitted on the remaining counts.
In addition, the court ordered that Amos must make restitution to the victims.
This is not Amos’ first conviction. On December 14, 2023, he was sentenced to 75 years in prison by Justice Bayo Taiwo of the Oyo State High Court for a similar offence. He also faces two more ongoing trials before Federal High Courts in Ibadan.
According to the EFCC, Amos orchestrated an elaborate investment scam that defrauded numerous victims of more than N1 billion.
His arrest on December 14, 2021, and subsequent prosecution reflect ongoing efforts by the EFCC to clamp down on fraudulent investment schemes across Nigeria
