The Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission, EFCC, Lagos Zonal office, on Tuesday, arraigned Ecobank Plc before
Justice Saliu Seidu of the Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos on a
five-count charge bordering on conversion of funds to the tune of $50,000 and
N9.2million.
Ecobank is facing trial alongside
one of its employees, Anieka Udoh.
One of the counts reads: “That
you, Ecobank Plc and one Anieka Udoh, whilst being an employee of Eco Bank Plc
sometime in 2009, at Lagos within the jurisdiction of the Honourable court,
negligently failed to exercise due diligence in relation to conduct of
financial transactions with Major General Umaru Mohammed and fraudulently
converted Major General Umaru Mohammed’s Ecobank MasterCard Account No.
0015052989 from debit card to credit card and consequently debited Major
General Umaru Mohammed’s account in the sum of over USD 50,000 (Fifty Thousand
United States Dollars) without the knowledge and authority of Major General
Umaru Mohammed.”
Another count reads: “That you,
Ecobank Plc and one Anieka Udoh, whilst being an employee of Eco Bank Plc
sometime in 2009, at Lagos within the jurisdiction of the Honourable court,
negligently failed to exercise due diligence in relation to conduct of
financial transactions with Major General Umaru Mohammed and fraudulently
converted Major General Umaru Mohammed’s Ecobank Domiciliary account to Naira
account Number 0015052989 without the knowledge and authority of Major General
Umaru Mohammed and consequently left a debit of N9.2Million in the said Naira
account.”
At the scheduled arraignment on
March 7, 2019, the first defendant, Ecobank had no legal representative.
However at today’s sitting, the
first defendant, Ecobank Plc represented by E. Majemite, pleaded not guilty to
the charge preferred against it.
Counsel to the second defendant,
Udoh O.J. Owoh informed the court about a pending application for bail on
behalf of his client, who pleaded not guilty to the charge when he was
arraigned.
In her response, counsel to the
prosecution, Bilkisu Buhari, objected to the bail application, stating that
“the defendant is a flight-risk if granted bail.”
Justice Seidu, after listening to
both parties, admitted the second defendant to bail in the sum of N20 million
and two sureties in like sum.
One of the sureties must be a
relation to the second defendant, resident in Lagos and have a landed property
in Lagos, whose title documents must be verified by the court.
The second surety must be a civil
servant on grade level 16 in Lagos.
The judge also directed that the
credentials of the second surety must be verified by the court.
Justice Seidu ordered the second
defendant to be remanded in prison custody pending the perfection of his bail
conditions and adjourned to April 9 and 11, 2019 for commencement of trial.
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