Justice D.I. Dipeolu of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, has reserved ruling until June 9, 2026, on the bail application filed by social media influencer Okoro Blessing Nkiruka, who is standing trial over an alleged N36 million fraud.
The defendant, popularly known as Blessing CEO, is being prosecuted by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on a two-count charge bordering on obtaining money by false pretence and stealing.
At Friday’s proceedings, defence counsel P.I. Nwafuru urged the court to grant his client bail on liberal terms.
However, prosecution counsel S.I. Suleiman opposed the application, informing the court that the EFCC had filed a 28-paragraph counter-affidavit through the investigating officer, Bufa Regina Okangbe, on May 29, 2026.
Suleiman told the court that the Commission relied on all the depositions and exhibits attached to the affidavit, alleging that the defendant had at some point failed to honour invitations extended by investigators during the course of the inquiry.
He urged the court to reject the bail request and instead order an accelerated hearing of the case.
After hearing submissions from both parties, Justice Dipeolu adjourned ruling on the bail application until June 9.
Earlier in the proceedings, the prosecution called its first witness, EFCC investigator Bufa Regina Okangbe, who detailed the agency’s investigation into the alleged fraud.
According to the witness, the EFCC received a petition alleging that the defendant collected N36 million from a petitioner for a property she allegedly did not own. She said the petition prompted a series of investigations, including a Bank Verification Number (BVN) search that uncovered several bank accounts linked to the defendant.
Okangbe told the court that the Commission subsequently sent investigation requests to various banks, the Lagos State Land Bureau, and the Corporate Affairs Commission to verify ownership of the property and obtain information on the defendant’s company, Break or Makeup Limited.
She testified that after reviewing the defendant’s bank statements, investigators invited her for questioning and confronted her with transactions linked to the petitioner.
According to the witness, the defendant made statements under caution in the presence of her lawyer and husband, during which she allegedly admitted receiving N30 million from the petitioner.
Okangbe further stated that information obtained from the Lagos State Land Bureau showed that the property at the centre of the dispute was not owned by the defendant but by one Tunbosun Osobu.
She told the court that Osobu later appeared before investigators with his lawyer and son and confirmed that he had leased the property to the defendant for three years. The witness said the lease expired in 2023 and was subsequently renewed in 2025.
The investigator also disclosed that the petitioner submitted documents, including a lease agreement allegedly executed between the petitioner and the defendant, as well as a tenancy acquisition form.
During the hearing, the prosecution sought to tender several documents in evidence through the witness. These included the original petition, statements allegedly made by the defendant in December 2025, the tenancy acquisition form, the petitioner’s bank statement, and account records linked to the defendant.
The case was adjourned until June 9 for ruling on the bail application and continuation of trial.
