Woman bags 98 years imprisonment for stealing N49million
Segun Showunmi in Ibadan
The Oyo State High Court on Tuesday sentenced former staff of First Bank of Nigeria(FBN) Limited, Oreoluwa Adesakin, to a cumulative 98 years in prison for fraud in the tune of N49 million.
Penpushing reports that Adesakin was found to have committed financial fraud against her employers after converting the tune of N49, 320,652.32, and additional $368,203.00 belonging to the bank to her personal use.
The Head, Media and Publicity of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC), Wilson Uwujaren said the convict was prosecuted by the Ibadan Zonal Office of the Commission on 14-count charges, bordering on stealing, forgery and fraudulent accounting.
One of the charges read: “That you Oreoluwa Adesakin sometime between the months of May, 2013 and November, 2013, at Ibadan within the Ibadan Judicial Division, whilst being a staff of First Bank PLC stole the sum of N25, 974,116.13 (Twenty Five Million, Nine Hundred and Seventy Four Thousand, One Hundred and Sixteen Naira, Thirteen Kobo) from First Bank PLC MoneyGram Payment Naira Account, property of First bank PLC.”
She pleaded not guilty to all the charges, which necessitated her trial.
Penpushing further reports that the commission in a statement said the prosecution counsel, Usman Murtala in arguing his case, presented every vital document and witnesses which nailed the convict.
The judge, Justice Muniru Olagunju noted that the anti-graft agency amassed a pool of incontrovertible evidence against the convict and did a diligent investigation and prosecution, and therefore pronounced Adesakin guilty of all the charges.
Penpushing also reports that, the judge sentenced her to seven years in prison without an option of fine on each of the 14 counts, which will run concurrently, and the court equally ruled that, the convict is also to restitute the First Bank, through the commission all the money she stole.
The convict was arraigned April 4, 2014 by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) following a conclusion of investigations against her which arose from a petition from her former employer, dated December 18, 2013.
Penpushing reports that the bank alleged in the petition that Adesakin, as its Money Transfer Operator, saddled with the responsibility of effecting payments through Western Union Money Transfer and Money Gram platforms, fraudulently manipulated accounting and withdrew the total sums of N49,320,652.32 and another $368,203.00 for herself, which the bank only uncovered while reviewing its internal account.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission( EFCC )was also able to establish that the convict used part of the proceeds of her crime to acquire landed properties in different parts of Oyo State.
