The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned three Wema Bank staff and four other individuals over an alleged ₦8.5 billion cyber-enabled fraud. The arraignment took place before Justice Daniel Osiagor at the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos.
The accused bank employees—Samuel Asiegbu, Fabian Onyeimachi, and Kingsley Kejim—were charged alongside Hannah Okunlola Adesokan, Hamza Zakariya, Achionu Ubaku, and Sunday Osademe. They face an eight-count charge related to conspiracy and obtaining money under false pretences.
EFCC spokesperson Dele Oyewale, in a statement issued on Monday, revealed that the defendants allegedly conspired to alter and manipulate data within Wema Bank’s systems in January 2025. The manipulation led to the unlawful withdrawal of ₦8,568,090,500 from customer accounts.
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One of the charges reads: “That you, Samuel Ihechukwu Asiegbu, Ejim Kingsley Kelechi, and other persons at large, sometime in January 2025, conspired amongst yourselves to cause loss of property to bank accounts domiciled in Wema Bank Nigeria Plc. in order to confer economic benefit to yourselves.”
The offences violate Section 27(1)(a) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015, and carry severe penalties upon conviction.
This high-profile case highlights the growing threat of internal bank fraud and the increasing vigilance of Nigeria’s anti-corruption agencies in tackling financial crimes.
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