Justice Irele Ifijeh of the Edo State High Court sitting in Benin City has sentenced Chinedu Francis Nwabuisi to two years imprisonment without an option of a fine for converting N21.9 million mistakenly credited to his bank account to personal use.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, saying the money, amounting to N21.9m, was mistakenly credited to Nwabuisi’s account following a system glitch at First Bank Plc.
The EFCC stated that Nwabuisi was arraigned by its Benin Zonal Directorate after allegedly converting the funds to his personal use.
During the trial, prosecution counsel, M.S. Dahiru, presented two witnesses, comprising a senior First Bank official and an EFCC operative, while several documents were also tendered and admitted as exhibits by the court.
In his defence, Nwabuisi reportedly told the court that he believed the money was proceeds from operating a Point of Sale (POS) business with the bank.
However, Justice Ifijeh found him guilty and sentenced him to two years in prison without an option of a fine.
The court also ordered him to refund the money to First Bank Plc.
The EFCC stated that the court ordered Nwabuisi to “restitute the complainant, First Bank Plc,” with the sum of N21,939,732.27.
Packaged by Emmanuel Okafor
