Nigeria, Aug. 9 -- The Federal High Court in Lagos has sentenced Emmanuel Aitanu to five years in prison for laundering proceeds of cybercrime through foreign currency, cryptocurrency, and real estate.

Trial judge Dehinde Dipeolu delivered the judgement on Friday, convicting Mr Aitanu on six counts filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Prosecution lawyer, Bilkisu Buhari-Bala, assisted by Zenat Atiku, told the court that Mr Aitanu, alongside Peter Cruz and others still at large, conspired in 2017 to fraudulently divert funds into a sham account, "DLP Designs East Coast," domiciled at Citibank.

According to the EFCC, the proceeds were retained in cryptocurrency wallets and Nigerian bank accounts, and partly spent ...