A Federal High Court in Lagos on Thursday adjourned until July 23, ruling in the adoption of the plea bargain in the alleged N8.7million fraud trial of a former Union bank staff, Kazeem Adeniyi.
The Counsel for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ms C.C. Okezie, told the court that both parties had reached a plea bargain agreement, but the complainant had yet to receive financial reimbursement.
The EFCC alleged that Adeniyi, on May 8, 2018, while working as a staff of the bank, failed to obtain proper data of a bank customer; Mr Alexander Cherembem, before processing Unionmobile in respect to Account No. 0010807900.
The defendant, is also alleged to have conspired with other persons now at large, to impersonate the complainant and fraudulently withdrew the sum of N8.7million from the said account.
The former banker had, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.
At the resumed hearing, a Union Bank’s representative, Mr Idakwo Haruna, who identified himself as the team lead of the banks’ fraud recovery sub-unit, told the court that the bank had agreed to the terms of the agreement.
According to him, they had undertaken to repay the complainant and were in the process of approving the payment.
Okezie on her part, told the court that N2.9million had been recovered from the defendant in trenches during the investigation, out of which N1million had been transmitted to the bank for reimbursement.
Consequently, Justice Austine Obiozor, also adjourned the case until July 23, for the bank to process repayment to the complainant before the court could rule on the plea bargain.
“There is no law to accept the plea bargain, it is at the discretion of the court and the court also has a right of restitution,” Obiozor held.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the offence, contravened and is punishable under sections 22, 22(2) and 37 of the Cyber Crimes Prohibition Act, 2015.
