Femi Fani-Kayode has been in a legal brawl with the Economic and financial commission (EFCC). He along with former Minister of State for Finance, Nemadi Usman, were facing trial for alleged money laundering and diversion of N4.9 billion at a Federal High Court in 2018.
During the course of the case, the prosecution alleged that the former minister had allegedly brought several forged medical reports to stall the case and the case of purported forgery led to the EFCC instituting another case against the former minister for the offense of forgery, uttering of medical reports and fabrication of evidences at the special offences court on the 17th day of December, 2021 while the substantive case of money laundering and fraud is still ongoing at the Federal High Court.
The offense of forgery is provided for in the criminal code, hence it is a crime by the reason of it being provided for as an offense under the criminal code.
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What is forgery:
S.465. of the Criminal Code defined forgery thus:
- A person who makes a false document or writing knowing it to be false, and with intent that it may in any way be used or acted upon as genuine, whether in the State or elsewhere, to the prejudice of any person, or with intent that any person may, in the belief that it is genuine, be induced to do or refrain from doing any act, whether in the State or elsewhere, is said to forge the document or writing.
- A person who makes a counterfeit seal or mark, or makes an impression of a counterfeit seal knowing the seal to be counterfeit, or makes a counterfeit representation of the impression of a genuine seal, or makes without lawful authority an impression of a genuine seal, with intent in either case that the thing so made may in any way be used or acted upon as genuine, whether in the State or elsewhere, to the prejudice of any person, or with intent that any person may, in the belief that it is genuine, be induced to do or refrain from doing any act, whether in the State or elsewhere, is said to forge the seal or mark.
The term “make a false document or writing” includes altering a genuine document or writing in any material part, either by erasure, obliteration, removal, or otherwise; and making any material addition to the body of a genuine document or writing; and adding to a genuine document or writing any false date, attestation, seal or other material matter.
It is immaterial in what language a forged document or writing is expressed.
It is immaterial that the forger of anything forged may not have intended that any particular person should use or act upon it, or that any particular person should be prejudiced by it, or be induced to do or refrain from doing any act.
It is immaterial that the thing forged is incomplete or does not purport to be a document, writing, or seal, which would be binding in law for any particular purpose, if it is so made, and is of such a kind, as to indicate that it was intended to be used or acted upon.
With the advancement of ICT in Nigeria today, the definition of forgery has been made to include electronic documents; soft copies of documents, hence not just physical documents can be forged, electronic documents can be forged too.
S.359 of the criminal law of Lagos state, 2011 and 84 & 258 of the Evidence act, 2011 recognizes and includes electronic generated documents to the purview of documents as provided in s.465 of the criminal code.
In the case of Nigerian Air Force v. James (2002) 18 NWLR (Pt.798)295, the court held that the central theme that runs through the provisions of the statute in terms of the offense of forgery and what makes a document forged is that the document must tell a lie about itself. The false statement must relate to the authenticity of the document.
Therefore, a document is forged when the document lies about itself as to the genuineness of the document.
The punishment for the offense of forgery is provided for in s.467 of the criminal code and it provides that the crime is declared a felony and it carries a punishment of not less than 3 years imprisonment term. But when the forger forges a seal of the government the punishment is life Imprisonment.
Unfortunately, Mr. Femi Fani Kayode May be looking at 3 years jail term if the court finds him guilty of the crime of forgery according to s.467 of the criminal code.