A Facebook user, Shamsuddeen Lawal Hussain, claimed that the son of the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, was in the EFCC net for fraud

Hussain made the comment in reaction to a post by the EFCC indicating that one Tope Peter Obi was convicted and sentenced for fraud

Checks by Topnewstv.com.ng have, however, shown that the claim is false as “Tope Peter Obi” is not the son of the LP flagbearer

Shamsuddeen Lawal Hussain, a Facebook user, claimed in a Facebook comment sighted by Legit.ng that a son of the Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, was in the EFCC net.

“Peter Obi’s son in EFCC net,” he posted on Facebook.

Hussain was responding to a post by Nigeria’s anti-graft commission, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), with the title, Court Jails Obi One Year For Possession of Fraudulent Documents.

In the post, the EFCC said Justice O.A. Okunuga of the Lagos state high court sitting in Ikeja, on Tuesday, November 22, convicted and sentenced one Tope Peter Obi to one-year imprisonment for possession of fraudulent documents.

Obi was arraigned by the EFCC on a one-count charge bordering on possession of fraudulent documents, an offence contrary to Section 318 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State 2011.

He pleaded “guilty” to the one-count charge.

Justice Okunuga subsequently sentenced Obi to one-year imprisonment, with an option of a fine of N500,000.

Is Tope Peter Obi the son of Labour Party flagbearer Peter Obi?

While the convict shares a similar name with the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, there is no evidence indicating that he is the son of the former Anambra governor.

Legit.ng checked through the full statement released by the EFCC on its website and social media pages. The anti-graft agency did not state anywhere that the convict has any relationship with the Labour Party flagbearer.

Daily Trust also confirmed in its own checks that Tope Peter Obi is not the son of the Labour Party’s presidential candidate.

According to the newspaper, the LP presidential candidate has two children named: Gabriella Nwamaka Francis Obi and Gregory Peter Oseloka Obi.

Verdict: Peter Obi’s son not convicted for fraud

The above findings show that the claim that Obi’s son was paraded is false. Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi is not the father of Tope, who was arrested and sentenced to one year’s imprisonment for fraud.

The only male child of Peter Obi is Gregory Peter Oseloka Obi, not “Tope Peter Obi”