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Tag: Ex-bank

  • Alleged N38b theft: Apex court okays ex-bank chiefs for trial

    Alleged N38b theft: Apex court okays ex-bank chiefs for trial

    Former Managing Director of defunct Finbank Plc Okey Nwosu and three Executive directors of the bank – Dayo Famoroti, Agnes Ebubedike and Danjuma Ocholi –– have lost their bid to quash the charge of stealing brought against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    The Supreme Court, on Friday, upheld the appeal by EFCC and set aside the decision of the Court of Appeal, Lagos division, which quashed the charge on the grounds that it was an abuse of court process.

    The apex court, in a unanimous judgment by a seven-man panel, faulted the Court of Appeal’s finding that the decision by the EFCC to charge the four bankers with stealing at the Lagos High Court, while maintaining a charge of money laundering against them on related facts at the Federal High Court, would expose them to double jeopardy.

    The court directed the bankers to submit themselves for trial. It remitted the case to the Lagos State chief judge for expeditious trial.

    The lead judgment on the appeal  was used to decide two other appeals on similar issues,

    Justice Musa Datijo Muhammad, in the lead judgment,  held that it was unreasonable to suggest that the prosecution of the respondents by the appellant was aimed at either irritating or annoying them or a bid by the prosecution to stall justice.

    Based on a petition by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), accusing the bankers of “financial misappropriation and false misrepresentation of financial records” during their tenure in Finbank, the anti-graft agency conducted an investigation and made startling findings.

    The EFCC found, among others, that the respondents had allegedly incorporated seven pseudo companies and transferred funds from Finbank to the fake companies through two separate broker firms.

    The anti-graft agency also found out that  the bank’s funds in excess of N20 billion were transferred through Springboard Trust and Investment Limited, ostensibly as loans to the seven fake companies although the companies neither maintained any accounts with the bank nor applied for any such loans.

    The commission further discovered that over N18 billion was illegally transferred to another stockbroking company, Integrated Trust Investment Company Limited, which was utilised by the company to acquire several shares of Finbank in the names of the seven pseudo companies incorporated by the respondents.

    Following its findings, the EFCC charged them at the Federal High Court, Lagos, on money laundering charges. It subsequently initiated another charge of stealing against them at the Lagos High Court, Ikeja, having obtained a fiat from the Lagos State attorney general.

    Nwosu and others challenged the charge at the Lagos High Court on the grounds that it was an abuse of court process and would expose them to double jeopardy. The Lagos High Court dismissed their objection.

    They appealed to the Court of Appeal, Lagos division, and won, leading to the appellate court quashing the charge against them; a decision the EFCC appealed at the Supreme Court.

    On Friday, Justice Muhammad said: “The two courts, as earlier demonstrated in this judgment, enjoys, in terms of respective offences before them, mutually exclusive jurisdictions.

    “The one is limited to hearing and dealing with offences created by the National Assembly in respect of its area of competence, while the other is competent to determine only such offences that Lagos House of Assembly, in its area of competence, legislated upon and vests it with jurisdiction.

    “Besides, the offence of stealing as created by the Lagos State House of Assembly, notwithstanding the same or similar facts as constitutes other offences created by the National Assembly, retains its identity as being not only dissimilar, but distinctively different.

    “It is wrong, in the light of these characteristic, for the lower court to hold that the trial court’s jurisdiction has abated on the grounds that the proceedings before it against the defendants constitutes abuse of the process of that court,” it said.

    The court further held that the rule of double jeopardy, as contained in Section 36(9) of the1999 Constitution cannot avail the respondents having been unable to prove that they are being prosecuted for the same or substantially, the same offence at the Lagos High Court and the Federal High Court.

    “Accordingly, this meritorious appeal is allowed, and the perverse judgment of the lower court is set aside. The decision of the trial court in consequence, prevails,” it said.

    The court remitted the case to the Lagos State chief judge for expeditious trial of the defendants on the charge.

    Justices Walter Samuel Onnoghen, Olabode Rhodes-Vivour, Nwali Sylvester Ngwuta, Clara Bata Ogunbiyi, Chima Centus Nweze and Amiru Sanusi agreed with the lead judgment.

  • Alleged forgery: Ex-bank chair sues police

    A former chairman of defunct Citizen Bank Limited, Lady Joyce Udensi Ifegwu, has urged the Federal High Court in Lagos to determine whether the police can investigate an allegation of marriage certificate forgery against her twice.

    She wants the court to determine whether the Police is still entitled to investigate her, after men of the Zone Two Command headquarters, Onikan had concluded investigation on the the subject.

    Inspector-General of Police, Commissioner of Police, Special Fraud Unit, Ikoyi and Inspector Justus Ogar are the respondents

    Ifegwu’s daughter, Mrs Nnenna Enweliku, had petitioned the Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Zone Two last January 27, alleging that her mother was not legally married to her father and that the marriage certificate she presented to obtain a letter of administration for her late father’s estate, the late Chief Dike Udensi Ifegwu, was forged.

    Dissatisfied with the outcome of the investigation, she wrote a second petition to the Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Criminal Investigation Department, Abuja.

    As a result, the police initiated fresh investigation of the allegation, following which the applicant filed the suit seeking to halt her possible arraignment over the allegation.

    Lady Ifegwu is praying the court to declare that the defendants lack the power to investigate allegation of forgery of marriage certificate against her for a second time. She said a suit pending in High Court of Abia between her and three others against the probate registrar and seven others dwells on the issue.

    Her suit is supported by 37-paragraph affidavit where she swore that she was lawfully married under the Marriage Act, Native Law and Customs to the late Udensi Ifegwu until his death on July 18, 2012. She averred that they had eight children, including the petitioner who is her first child.

    “After my husband’s death, one of my children namely Mrs Nenna Enweliku (nee Dike Udensi) petitioned the Nigerian Police at Zone 2 Command alleging that I was not lawfully married to her father and that I forged the marriage certificate evidencing my marriage to my deceased husband. On the strength of the petition, I was by a letter dated July 7, 2014 summoned to the Zone Two Command headquartes Onikan, Lagos,” she stated.

    She added that she made statements on how her late husband misplaced the original marriage certificate obtained at Aba Local Government marriage registry in 1978.

    She said they could not get a certified true copy of their marriage certificate in 1992 because a registrar whose name she could not remember informed them that tthe register containing their marriage certificate was lost in the process of moving documents from the marriage registry in Aba Local government to Aba South Local government.

    “On account of loss of the registry copy of my 1978 marriage certificate, the then registrar counselled my husband and I to register our marriage through the issuance of another marriage certificate duly signed by both of us in 1992 and also signed by the then marriage registrar.

    “In the course of being interrogated by the third defendant, I was informed by him that another petition was written to the second defendant to by daughter on the same subject of allegation of forgery which had earlier been investigated by officers of Zone Two and which is also a live issue in the suit pending at the High Court of Abia State.

    “On August 18, 2015, I was summoned by the third defendant to his Milverton Road, Ikoyi office. During the meeting, the third defendant informed me that he has established that my marriage certificate was forged and that unless I withdraw suit No. HU/159/2013, which I instituted at the Abia State High Court, he will make sure that I face trial for forgery with maximum publicity given to my arraignment and trial,” she swore.

     

  • Ex-bank officials get 91 years for N114.6m fraud

    The  Kebbi State High Court has jailed  three former bank workers for 91 years over N114.6 million fraud.

    The convicts, who were jailed by Justice Ibrahim Mairiga, include Suleiman Ibrahim Musa, Bilyaminu Usman and Lawal Suleiman.

    They were jailed  on a 16-count charge of conspiracy, forgery, theft and criminal breach of trust brought against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    The convicts, who were former officials of FinBank Plc (acquired by First City Monument Bank Plc in 2011), Birnin-Kebbi branch in Kebbi State, were first arraigned on July 21, 2010, and had pleaded not guilty.

    A statement by the Head of Media and Publicity of the EFCC, Mr. Wilson Uwujaren, said:  “Musa, who was then the head of Operations, defrauded the bank of N101, 707,000; Usman and Suleiman, both tellers, connived to defraud the bank of N6, 627,500 and N6, 267,500.

    “The crimes were committed between 2008 and 2010. They had at different times debited the bank’s customers by carrying out unauthorized withdrawals.

    “They were arrested by EFCC operatives following a petition by the bank’s management, after several customers lodged complaints alleging fraudulent deductions from their bank accounts. They had backed up their claims with various documentary evidence – stamped deposits and investment certificates.

    “After five years of trial, Justice Mairiga, having been convinced by the evidence brought before him by the prosecuting counsel, Aisha Habib, found them guilty of the charges.”

    The judge said: “By considering the amount involved and weight of evidence presented before the court by the prosecution, which was never challenged by the defence, it shows that their wrongful act caused a great injury to the bank.

    “I therefore, find the accused persons guilty as charged, and so convict and sentence them to 55 years, seven years and 29 years imprisonment without an option of fine, with the jail term to serve concurrently.”

    The judge also ordered the convicts to return the stolen money to the bank.

  • Ex-bank manager arraigned for ‘N30m fraud’

    The Police Special Fraud Unit (SFU) yesterday arraigned the former Manager of the First City Monument Bank (FCMB), Okerin branch in Lagos, Rosemary Usifor, for alleged N30 million fraud.

    Usifo was charged with a one-count charge of “fraudulently obtaining the money from a fixed deposit account belonging to a customer of the bank”.

    She pleaded not guilty.

    The prosecutor, Effiong Asuquo, alleged that the accused committed the offence in 2011. He said Usifor forged a letter with which she fraudulently obtained the money from the account.

    According to Asuquo, the accused has been at large since the perpetuation of the crime and was arrested last month.

    Justice Saliu Saidu ordered that Usifo be remanded in the SFU, pending the hearing of a bail application filed by her lawyer, Osa Isibor.

    Hearing of the bail application was fixed for January 7.

  • Ex-bank workers in court

    The National Industrial Court (NIC) has fixed May 6 for the hearing of the suit filed against Zenith Bank by some of its sacked workers.

    Justice Kola Olalere adjourned the case till that date to enable the defence counsel, Obafemi Oluwole, to make some corrections in the statement of defence.

    The judge reprimanded Oluwole for making the request when it took the defendant six months to file its defence. She awarded N15,000 cost against the defendant.

    She urged the defence counsel that all corrections are made and positions regularised by February 28 in preparation for the definite hearing of the case.

    Twenty-four former workers of the bank went to court to challenge the mode of their disengagement and the basis of the entitlements paid them. They are asking the court to compel the bank to pay them N550 million which they claim it owes them.

    The plaintiffs averred that they were notified of their disengagement via e-mail and SMS messages between April 24 and 25, last year. The defendant later gave the claimants their letters of disengagement which were back dated to March 24, last year.

    This, they said, negated their conditions of service as stipulated in the defendant’s staff handbook.

    They said: “It is a claimant’s condition of service while in the defendant’s employment and the policy of the defendant that three months’ notice should be given before the termination of employment of an employee by the bank or the employee should be paid three month’s salary in lieu of the notice. Prior to their said disengagement, the claimants were not given any notice of disengagement nor were they paid salary in lieu of notice as required by their conditions of service and policy of the defendant.”

    They claimed the bank failed to consult with them or with any trade union before terminating their employment and did not apply the principle “of last in, first out” as required by their conditions of service.

    The plaintiffs said the defendant arbitrarily computed what it paid them by using an erroneous template fraught with inconsistencies contrary to what is specified in the bank’s staff handbook.

    They urged the court to order the bank to pay them their “full entitlements” because what was paid to them after their disengagement fell short of their actual benefits as stipulated in the staff handbook.

  • Ex-bank chief Ike Oraekwuotu charts new course

    THESE are definitely best of the times for Ike Oraekwuotu, former Managing Director of Equitorial Trust Bank. After his exit from the banking industry no thanks to the Lamido Sanusi-led Central Bank sweeping reforms, Ike delves into haulage business and he is said to be smiling to the bank with returns from his investment.