A Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has sentenced Miracle Deele to four months’ imprisonment for engaging in internet fraud.
According to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) document shared on Monday night, the judgment was delivered by Justice E. A. Obile on Monday, May 26, 2025, following Deele’s arraignment by the anti-draft agency Port Harcourt Zonal Directorate.
Deele faced a three-count charge involving impersonation and attempted fraud. According to court documents, he was found in possession of fraudulent content on his Tecno Spark phone—evidence that pointed to deliberate intent to deceive.
One of the charges noted that Deele used these documents in 2024 to make false representations in a bid to defraud others, a violation of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act, 2006.
The defendant pleaded guilty to the charges. Prosecution counsel, E. Abbiyesu, reviewed the case details and called EFCC operative Abdulazeez Jafar as a witness.
Jafar told the court that Deele was apprehended in April 2025 in the Eneka area of Port Harcourt after the Commission acted on reliable intelligence regarding his online scam activities.
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Investigations uncovered that Deele was running a romance scam, posing as a woman named Jenifer Annoson—a U.S. citizen—on social platforms like Facebook and Telegram.
Using her photos, he lured unsuspecting men, including a U.S. citizen named Anthony, into deceptive relationships with the aim of extorting money. The EFCC also confirmed that Deele gave a voluntary written statement in the presence of his lawyer during interrogation.
Given Deele’s admission of guilt and the supporting evidence, the prosecution urged the court to convict him. Meanwhile, defence lawyer B. I. O. Egwu appealed for leniency, stating that his client was remorseful and ready to turn over a new leaf.
In his ruling, Justice Obile sentenced Deele to four months at the Port Harcourt Correctional Centre or a fine of ₦300,000.
The court also ordered the forfeiture of his mobile device to the federal government. Additionally, Deele was required to sign an affidavit pledging to exhibit good behaviour going forward.
