A Zenith Bank Plc staff member, Femi Remigus, on Tuesday tendered exhibits against Mr. Ali Bello, the Chief of Staff (CoS) to Governor Usman Ododo of Kogi, in the alleged money laundering trial amounting to N3 billion.

Remigus, a Compliance Officer, tendered the exhibits while being led in evidence by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) lawyer, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, before Justice Obiora Egwuatu of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

The banker was the 6th prosecution witness (PW-6) in the ongoing trial of Ali, who is also a nephew to ex-Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi.

The EFCC had, on February 8, 2023, arraigned Ali Bello, Abba Daudu, Yakubu Siyaka Adabenege, Iyada Sadat, and Rashida Bello (at large) on 18 counts of criminal misappropriation and money laundering of N3,081,804,654.00.

They, however, pleaded not guilty to all the counts when they were read to them.

When the matter was called on Tuesday, Oyedepo informed the court that the matter was slated for continuation.

While being led in evidence, Remigus explained how millions of naira were deposited into Komfort Koncept Company’s bank account from the bank accounts of different local government areas (LGAs) in the state on different dates in 2018.

The witness said that on specific dates, money was simultaneously transferred from the said account, at different times, into some of the defendants’ bank accounts, especially Daudu’s.

“On October 4, 2018, there were nine credits or inflows into the account of Komfort Koncept Company,” he said.

He told the court that N18,629,944 came from Ibaji LGA of Kogi, N20,887,537 came from Adavi LGA, and N17,496,929 came from Kogi LGA.

The PW-4 also said N18,460,565 came from Kabba LGA, while N17 million came from Ankpa LGA.

“Yagba West Local Government credited N18,234,063, while Ofu Local Government credited N21,363,633,” the witness added.

When asked how much was in the Komfort Koncept’s bank account before the inflows, Remigus said: “N7,275.”

According to him, on the date of the inflows, there was a transfer of N105 million to Abba Daudu and others.

Earlier in the proceedings, the EFCC’s witness identified associated bank documents, including the statements of account, account opening packages, and certificates of identification of accounts of Komfort Koncept, Yakubu, Daudu, and others.

Oyedepo, therefore, applied to tender the documents as exhibits, but the defense legal team, including Nureni Jimoh, SAN, objected to the admissibility of the documents but reserved objections for the final written address stage.

Justice Egwuatu subsequently admitted the exhibits in evidence, noting that the probative value of the exhibits would be determined by the court during the judgment.

The judge consequently adjourned the matter until May 5, May 19, May 20, and May 21 for the continuation of the trial.

It would be recalled that the EFCC is also prosecuting Ali Bello in another case before Justice James Omotosho.

(NAN)

Justice Alexander Owoeye of the Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered Zenith Bank Plc to pay Christomax Concept Limited the sum of N30 million as general and aggravated damages for fraudulently and illegally debiting the firm’s accounts.

The plaintiffs—Christomax Concept Limited, Chris Integrated Company Limited, and Mr. Christopher Adayi—filed suit number FHC/L/CS/2039/2024 through their lawyer, Adetunji Adedoyin-Adeniyi of AAA Chambers, seeking a declaration that the bank’s failure to refund the fraudulently deducted sum constituted a breach of fiduciary duty.

They also requested an order compelling Zenith Bank to immediately refund the N10.6 million.

They further sought:

An order for the bank to write off the balance of a loan granted to the 1st plaintiff on May 27, 2022, since the illegal deductions were not refunded.

An injunction restraining Zenith Bank from taking any action to recover the loan or from harassing or intimidating the plaintiffs.

A directive for the bank to pay N500 million in damages for breach of fiduciary duty.

However, Zenith Bank, in its defense, argued that the suit was wrongly filed as an Originating Summons instead of a Writ of Summons and should be struck out.

The bank contended that the N15 million allegedly deducted was partially recovered, with N5,068,290.00 salvaged from Kuda Microfinance Bank.

The bank further argued that declaratory reliefs could not be granted without solid evidence and urged the court to dismiss the plaintiffs’ claims.

Justice Owoeye, in his judgment, pointed out that Zenith Bank had admitted to issuing a debit card linked to the plaintiffs’ accounts.

He stated that as the card issuer, the bank was responsible for authorizing transactions made with the card, taking action in case of fraud to stop further unauthorized use, and reversing fraudulent transactions when advised or directed.

The judge criticized the bank for failing to act after the fraud was reported on July 13, 2022, describing its conduct as “oppressive and high-handed.”

The court also ruled that the bank’s failure to refund N10,631,710.00, which was fraudulently deducted from the plaintiffs’ accounts, resulted in loss of business and goodwill, amounting to a breach of fiduciary duty owed by the bank.

The court ruled in favor of the plaintiffs and ordered:

An immediate refund of N10,631,710.00 deducted from their accounts.

A payment of N30 million in damages for breach of fiduciary duty, loss of business, goodwill, embarrassment, inconvenience, and hardship caused to the plaintiffs.

This judgment reaffirms banks’ duty to protect customers’ funds and take swift action in fraud cases.

An Abia businessman, Eke Agbai Eke, has sued First Bank of Nigeria over an alleged fraudulent withdrawal of N55 million from his fixed deposit account at the bank’s former Abiriba branch, now relocated to Uzuakoli.

In his lawsuit, filed by his lawyer,Ebuka Nwaeze, the claimant stated that First Bank has refused to return his deposit, which he originally placed at the Abiriba branch to help sustain the bank’s presence in his community.

The claimant stated that as a community leader, he viewed the deposit as a contribution to local development.

The alleged fraud came to light in December 2023 when Eke discovered he could no longer access his personal account through the bank’s mobile app and was unable to reach the Business Development Manager. Upon visiting First Bank’s Gwarinpa branch in Abuja, he was reportedly informed that N55 million had been withdrawn from his fixed deposit in six consecutive transactions—even though he was in Umuahia at the time of the unauthorized deductions.

Following this discovery, Eke demanded the liquidation of his fixed deposit, but months passed without any action from the bank.

After multiple complaints, First Bank launched an internal investigation, which resulted in the dismissal of fewer than nine senior officials allegedly linked to the fraud.While First Bank’s legal counsel declined to comment, the plaintiff’s lawyers have publicly addressed the matter.