The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has filed a 13-count charge against a former chairman of First Bank Nigeria (FBN), Oba Otudeko, and three others over alleged fraud.
The three other defendants are former group managing director of FBN, Stephen Olabisi Onasanya, an ex-board member of Honeywell Flour Mills plc, Soji Akintayo, and ex-board member of Honeywell Flour Mills plc and Anchorage Limited, a company linked to Otudeko.
Henzodaily reports that the anti-graft agency filed the charges at the federal high court in Lagos on Thursday.
The EFCC said the defendants will be arraigned on Monday.
In the charge sheet, the EFCC accused Otudeko and the other defendants of obtaining tranches of loans—₦12.3 billion, ₦5.2 billion, ₦6.2 billion, ₦6.1 billion, and ₦1.5 billion, from First Bank under the pretence that the funds were obtained by some firms.
The charge read, “That you, CHIEF OBA OTUDEKO, STEPHEN OLABISI ONASANYA, SOJI AKINTAYO AND ANCHORAGE LEISURE LIMITED between 2013 and 2014 in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court conspired amongst yourselves to obtain the sum of N12,300,000,000.00 (Twelve Billion, Three Hundred Million Naira Only), from First Bank Limited on the pretence that the said sum represented credit facilities applied for by V-TECH DYNAMIC LINKS LIMITED and Stallion Nigeria Limited, which representation you know to be false, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 8(a) of Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.
“That you, CHIEF OBA OTUDEKO, STEPHEN OLABISI ONASANYA, SOJI AKINTAYO, and ANCHORAGE LEISURE LIMITED, on or about 26th day of November, 2013 in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court obtained the sum of N5,200,000,000,00 (Five Billion, Two Hundred Million Naira Only), from First Bank Limited on the pretence that the said sum represented credit facilities applied for by V- TECH DYNAMIC LINKS LIMITED which representation you know to be false, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 8(a) of Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.
“That you, CHIEF OBA OTUDEKO, STEPHEN OLABISI ONASANYA, SOJI AKINTAYO AND ANCHORAGE LEISURE LIMITED in between 2013 and 2014 in Lagos, within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court obtained the total sum of N6,200,000,000,00 (Six Billion, Two Hundred Million Naira Only), from First Bank Limited on the pretence that the said sum represented credit facilities applied for and disbursed to Stallion Nigeria Limited, which representation you know to be false, and you thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 8(a) of Advance Fee Fraud and other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.”
The anti-graft agency has also stated that there will be 12 witnesses for the trial.
The witnesses include three EFCC investigators and representatives of First Bank, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Stallion Nigeria, and V-tech Dynamics Limited.