Alfred Emmanuel, a 39-year-old staff member of United Bank for Africa (UBA), has been charged with a massive fraud scheme involving the theft of N356,730,000 from the account of Professor Abiodun Johnson, a customer of the bank. Emmanuel appeared before a Lagos Magistrates’ Court following his arrest by operatives of the Nigerian Police Force Intelligence Unit.
Emmanuel is accused of conspiring with other unnamed accomplices to withdraw the large sum of money from the professor’s account without his consent. The accused allegedly forged the withdrawal booklet linked to the account and executed a series of unauthorized transactions. The stolen funds were reportedly converted for personal use, and the culprits are believed to have fled the scene after the crime.
The police investigation revealed that the funds were withdrawn in multiple transactions, with the stolen money being transferred to various accounts. The fraudulent activities came to light after intelligence operatives at the Force Headquarters received a tip-off regarding the illegal withdrawals. Following days of investigative work, Alfred Emmanuel was apprehended at a hideout in Lagos, although other suspects involved in the scheme remain at large.
A police source confirmed that efforts to track down the remaining suspects are ongoing. The case has sparked concerns about the level of trust placed in bank employees and the measures in place to prevent such large-scale fraud within financial institutions.
Emmanuel was charged with six counts, including conspiracy, fraudulent withdrawal, stealing, and forgery. According to Police Prosecuting Counsel, Friday Mammeh, the offenses occurred between October 2023 and January 2024 at the UBA UNILAG branch in Lagos. Mammeh described how the defendant “betrayed the trust reposed in him by his employer” and collaborated with others to forge the withdrawal booklet, ultimately stealing the funds from Professor Johnson’s account.
The charges brought against Emmanuel are in violation of multiple sections of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015, including those pertaining to conspiracy, stealing, and forgery. Despite the gravity of the charges, Emmanuel pleaded not guilty to the allegations. His defense counsel, Barrister Austine Okeh, argued that Emmanuel is a first-time offender and requested that he be granted bail on liberal terms, assuring the court that his client would not abscond.
Magistrate A.O. Alogba, overseeing the case at the Igbosere Magistrates’ Court, granted Emmanuel bail in the sum of N1 million, with two sureties in like amount. The court also ordered that Emmanuel be detained at the Ikoyi correctional facility until he meets the bail conditions. The case was adjourned, and further proceedings are expected to take place in the coming weeks as the investigation into the wider fraud scheme continues.
