Lifting of reporting restrictions on 2017 Sodje Sports Foundation fraud case reveals brothers jailed
Melanie May | 29 January 2019 | News
The lifting of reporting restrictions on a donor defrauding case from 2017 reveal that a former professional footballer and a professional rugby player are among three brothers convicted for taking money given to the children’s charity they set up.
Efe Sodje, Bright Sodje, and Stephen Sodje siphoned off more than £60,000 given to the Sodje Sports Foundation (SSF), and were jailed in September 2017 for 18 months, 21 months, and two years and six months respectively at the Central Criminal Court in relation to the fraud.
A judge at the same court lifted reporting restrictions on 21 January preventing publication of the result of that trial, following the completion of a number of linked legal proceedings.
Efe Sodje played in the Football League between 1995 and 2015 and appeared for Nigeria in the 2000 African Cup of Nations and the 2002 World Cup, while Bright Sodje played professional rugby league and union in the 1980s and 1990s.
Sports star brothers scammed donors to their children’s charity – convictions of Bright, Efe and Stephen Sodje can now be revealed following the conclusion of another separate trial. They were jailed in September 2017. Full details: https://t.co/BZ7ZBpL2KO @ChtyCommission @cpsuk pic.twitter.com/4XcgQvDgpk
— National Crime Agency (NCA) (@NCA_UK) January 21, 2019
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The brothers set up the SSF in 2009 with the stated aim of helping poor children in the Niger delta. Between 2011 and 2014 they defrauded donors of at least £63,000. There is no record of what happened to any of the cash donations made at any of the events however, meaning NCA officers were unable to put an exact figure on how much the Sodjes profited.
NCA officers found donations usually ended up in personal bank accounts of family members. In many cases the Sodjes asked that donations be paid to their personal accounts. At least £34,000 was collected in this way. Events over the three years, including charity football matches, raised funds but nothing reached any under-privileged or sick children.
NCA deputy director Chris Farrimond said:
“Bright, Efe and Stephen Sodje promoted themselves as generous, community-minded, figures when they were knowingly defrauding people who thought they were helping deprived children in Nigeria.
“NCA financial investigators built a detailed picture of the movement of money in and out of the foundation and showed beyond doubt that for most of the foundation’s existence there was no charitable purpose.”
Tracy Howarth, Head of Regulatory Compliance at the Charity Commission, said:
“The public rightly expect those running charities to be motivated solely by a desire to further their charity’s purpose, and to behave in ways that inspires trust in their charity and charitable endeavour more widely. The individuals convicted here did the opposite: they misused their privileged position to exploit donors and supporters, and their financial gain came at the expense of the children and causes the charity was supposed to support, and of the trust and goodwill that the donors and supporters of charity place in those responsible for charity.”
Former Premier League footballer Okeremute Samuel “Sam” Sodje was also charged with fraudulent trading in relation to the Sodje Sports Foundation but was cleared following the initial trial. Sam Sodje’s brother Akpo, 37, is still wanted in connection with the fraud. He fled the UK during the investigation and a European Arrest Warrant has now been issued.
Two other men were convicted in connection with the same offences in January 2018 at an earlier trial. Emmanuel Noel Oziegbi Ehikhamen was given a 12 month suspended sentence, while Andrew Yulbrynner Oruma aged 50, from Thamesmead in London was jailed for four years in his absence after absconding from bail during the trial. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.
About Melanie May
Melanie May is a journalist and copywriter specialising in writing both for and about the charity and marketing services sectors since 2001. She can be reached via thepurplepim.com.