A crack team of operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Thursday, August 6, 2015 arrested one Kato Ifrahimu Nyamand and Godwin Odali, both staff of a new generation bank for conspiring to defraud the bank to the tune of N3.6bn (three billion, six million naira) with an e-payment mandate purportedly from Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
The suspects, who operate as a syndicate, sometime in June 2015, through their cronies submitted an e-payment mandate of N1.4bn (one billion, four hundred million naira) to Zenith bank and Access bank Plc.
The banks, sensing a foul play after noticing some abnormalities on the e-payment mandate discreetly contacted the Ministry of Agriculture for confirmation and authentication of the document. A response from the Ministry showed that, no mandate was sent to the banks.
Hence, the EFCC was contacted for investigation.
While the investigation was underway, the suspects in furtherance of their dubious acts submitted another e-payment mandate of N1.398bn (one billion, three hundred and ninety eight million naira) to Zenith bank, Abuja branch though one Abiola Oloko, an accomplice. In the process, Oloko was arrested by EFCC operatives.
On arrest, Oloko confessed that, they have had several meetings to arrange and perfect “the deal”.
Oloko, who claimed to be a job seeker said, he was lured into “the business” by the bank officials whom he claimed gave him an identity card of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to answer the false name “Femi Babatunde”, but with his real passport photograph affixed to it.
The suspects will be arraigned in court as soon as investigation into the matter is concluded.