A contract employee of Diamond Bank, Eniola Morondiya, and four accomplices – Suleiman Mohammed, Ibrahim Danazumi, Roland Aroko, and Francis Akpabio – have been arraigned at a Lagos Federal High Court for allegedly moving N241 million from the bank.
Morondiya works as a teller at a branch of the bank in Jibowu, Lagos.
The police charge sheet alleged that
• She was used by the other accused persons to carry out the crime.
• She and the others hatched the plan on February 1, 2015 at meeting at Protea Hotel, Maryland, Lagos to transfer the money into various bank accounts in order to conceal its illicit origin.
• She was paid N3 million by one Solomon Ikeije, being the share promised her for aiding the crime.
• She received the money on February 3, 2015 and retained it in her own bank account after helping the fraud syndicate to post the N241 million on February 2, 2015.
The prosecutor, E.K. Ugwu, told the court that Akpabio received and concealed N27 million out of the N241 million in the Diamond Bank account of his company, Edokori Oil Ventures.
He allegedly transferred N7 million out of the N27 million into an account in Ecobank then transferred another N2.1 million into a separate account before withdrawing N3 million at a branch of Diamond Bank on Burma Road, Apapa, Lagos on February 2, 2015.
Ugwu alleged that N15 million was discovered in Akpabio’s Diamond Bank account during investigation.
The crime violates Section 15(2) (3), 17 and 18(a) of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2012.
The five accused persons pleaded not guilty to the four counts of conspiracy and money laundering.
But Ugwu urged the court to remand them in prison custody pending trial.
The judge remanded them in prison custody and adjourned the case until Tuesday, May 12 for trial.
He charged the prosecutor to assemble his witnesses and bring them to court to ensure a speedy trial.