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FCMB OF FRAUD: How The Bank Defrauded A Sports Bet Company of N1billion (Pat 1)

Published

3 years ago

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If you’re investing in a mega business project and First City Monument Bank (FCMB) is your banker, you would reasonably have a rethink after reading this exclusive piece. It is a story of how the bank and its desperate crooked senior staff almost ruined a foremost sports betting company in Nigeria.

It all started late in 2018 when the owner of the betting company (names withheld) gave the Allen Avenue, Ikeja branch of FCMB an instruction to buy dollars equivalent to N1billion for his domiciliary account with the bank. It is standard practice for the bankers to ensure that the foreign currency (dollars) appears in the customer’s domiciliary account before debiting him of the naira equivalent, and the customer made no mistake by emphasizing this when he instructed Mrs. Uki, his account officer at the bank to make the deal.

But out of greed, the senior officers of FCMB were sourcing for cheap dollars in order to make a huge profit, and in the process threw the ethics of their profession to the winds. Mrs. Joanne Oyenike was Allen Branch Manager of the bank then. She would later be sacked as a result of the scam and drama that trailed the transaction.

Another key figure in the scam is Mr. Adeoye Adeyemo, who was FCMB’s Head of Commercial Banking as of then. His department would later be disengaged for lack of results. It was the Allen Branch Manager, Mrs. Oyenike, and Adeyemo who led this shocking scam you’re about to read.

Note that when the Allen branch of the bank’s Customer Service Officer (CSO), Mr. Gboyega Johnson and Customer Service Manager (CSM), Mr Julius Ugwu got the notification for the transaction, they refused to treat it because the dollars have not reflected on the customer’s account accordingly. They declined to debit the customer’s account of N1billion as a result.

However, some crooked senior staff of the bank thereby moved the customer’s instruction to the Oba-Akran branch of FCMB, where the sum of N1billion was fraudulently deducted from the customer’s account without the dollar equivalent credited to his domiciliary account.

Meanwhile, the Sports Betting Company MD was seriously ill. Perhaps, he anticipated using the money for his treatment abroad but was denied the privilege by the crooked FCMB senior staff. It was until 2019 when he returned from his medical trip abroad that he decided to write the bank officially, and trouble started.

The bankers said the dollar equivalent of the N1billion was hanging (it could not be traced to date), and the customer threatened to withdraw all his company’s accounts from FCMB – that was when the management of the bank started begging him and proposed compensating him with N500million.

In fact, a prominent Southwest monarch was also approached by FCMB’s management to help in appealing to the cheated customer because he is one of the bank’s biggest customers.

More Details Will be revealed in the next part of the story……..

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Just In: Tinubu Set To Embark on  Two-weeks Annual Leave.

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20 hours ago

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October 2, 2024

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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has announced a two-week annual leave

 

According to Bayo Onanuga Special Adviser to the President (Information & Strategy) President Bola Tinubu will depart Abuja today for the United Kingdom to begin a two-week vacation, part of his yearly leave.

 

He will use the two weeks as a working vacation and a retreat to reflect on his administration’s economic reforms.

 

He will return to the country after the leave expires.

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Alleged Corruption : El-Rufai denies allegations, vow to swear on Quran….

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1 day ago

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October 2, 2024

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A former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has asserted that his entry into politics was driven solely by a desire to serve the people, not to amass wealth or siphon public funds.

 

El-Rufai made this declaration on Tuesday during a Hausa program aired on Freedom Radio, Kaduna.

 

Speaking candidly, the former governor dismissed allegations of financial misconduct during his administration, maintaining that he was already financially content before assuming office.

 

The Kaduna State House of Assembly had earlier indicted El-Rufai’s administration for the misappropriation of over N423 billion during his eight-year tenure.

 

 

However, El-Rufai and his associates have categorically denied the accusations, labeling them as politically motivated.

 

“I did not join politics to steal money or enrich myself. I was satisfied with what I had before becoming governor,” El-Rufai stated, adding that he is ready to swear on the Quran to prove his innocence if other former governors and current leaders do the same.

 

 

“I have always prayed for guidance in all I do, and I strive not to betray the trust of the people. Whenever the former governors of Kaduna State and other leaders are ready to swear with the Quran that they never misappropriated public funds, I will join them. I have no fear because I know I never took money that belonged to the people,” he said.

 

 

The former governor expressed dismay over the allegations, saying his administration has been accused without any clear evidence of where the money went missing or who took it.

 

He further claimed that his allies were being targeted and invited by the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission as part of a smear campaign against him.

 

“I have left everything to God’s judgment. I have prayed and will remain silent on the issue. I have instructed my lawyers to take legal action against those tarnishing my name, but for now, I’m focused on my activities like reading and writing,” he said.

 

 

El-Rufai emphasised that service to the people continues even after leaving office, stating, “You don’t need to hold a position in government to serve. We are still working with like-minded individuals who genuinely want to serve the people, not those seeking to enrich themselves.”

 

Looking ahead, El-Rufai revealed that he intends to return to politics in 2027 after completing his studies, remarking, “There is no retirement in politics. God willing, we will return and continue serving the people.”

 

 

 

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Alleged N27bn fraud: Ex-Taraba Gov., Ishaku, Spends 5th Night in EFCC Cell

Published

2 days ago

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October 1, 2024

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A FCT  High Court in Maitama, Abuja, on Monday remanded former Taraba State Governor, Darius Ishaku and former Permanent Secretary of the Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Bello Yero, in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.

 

The duo was arrested on September 27 for allegedly diverting N27bn belonging to the Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs.

 

In the suit, marked CR/792/24, filed before the Federal Capital Territory High Court, the EFCC accused the defendants of diverting N1,010,000,000 to their personal use between August 25, 2015, and March 21, 2016, in Abuja.

 

The anti-graft agency stated that this amount formed part of the 2.5 percent contingency funds belonging to the Bureau for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs.

 

 

The EFCC further alleged that the duo committed an offense contrary to Section 315 of the Penal Code A, Cap 532, Laws of the Federal Capital Territory of Nigeria 2007, which is punishable under the same section.

Other sums allegedly diverted by the defendants as part of the contingency fund include N650,686,369.99 between January 6, 2019, and April 29, 2021; N193,030,000 between January 2019 and April 29, 2021; and N170,549,842.00 between January 6, 2019, and April 29, 2021, among others.

 

Upon their arraignment, the defendants, according to a statement by the EFCC spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, pleaded not guilty. Oyewale stated that the prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN), asked the court for a trial date and an accelerated hearing of the matter.

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