A Federal High Court in Ikoyi,
Lagos, has ordered the remand of Ifeanyi Chukwu Azike, a former manager of
Ecobank Nigeria, over allegations of defrauding the bank’s customers to the tune
of N411million.
Azike, who was arraigned by the Police Special
Fraud Unit (SFU), was handed over to the police by the investigative unit of
the bank.
He was arraigned before Justice
Ayotunde Faji on Tuesday on a three-count charge bordering on obtaining money
under false pretences, false representation and fraud. The defendant, however,
pleaded not guilty to the charge.
Following his plea of not guilty,
police prosecutor, Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) Daniel Apochi urged
the court to remand him in prison pending trial.
Justice Faji ordered that the
defendant be remanded in prison till 8th of March, 2019 when his bail
application would be heard.
In a charge marked, FHC/L/56c/2019,
the police alleged that between 2016 and 2017, Azike fraudulently obtained N150
million from a customer of Ecobank Nigeria under false pretence of buying him
Federal Government Treasury Bill in his bank.
Azike was also alleged to have
forged the bank customer’s signature, picture and Letter of Instruction which
he used in opening another parallel account as Ikenna Okafor Kelvin with
account number: 5333063028.
The police also alleged that the
bank manager without the consent of the bank fraudulently converted the sum of
N411 million belonging to the bank to his personal use.
The offences were contrary to
Sections 1 (1) (a), 15(1)(2) and 15(2) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud
related Offence Act No. 14 of 2006, and punishable under Section 1 (3) of the
same Act.
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