Court orders final forfeiture of N1.17bn, $392,818, £35,070 allegedly stolen by ex-First Bank staff

.As EFCC arraigns 11 Chinese, firms for cybercrimes in Lagos

CHIGOZIE AMADI

Justice A.O. Owoeye of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, has ordered the final forfeiture of over N1.17 billion, $392,818, and £35,070 recovered from Muiz Tijani Adeyinka, a former employee of First Bank of Nigeria (FBN), to the Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN).

The ruling followed a motion filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which investigated fraudulent transactions linked to Adeyinka.

The forfeiture order was confirmed in a statement issued on Tuesday by Dele Oyewale, Head of Media & Publicity at the EFCC.

The EFCC revealed that First Bank had filed a petition on March 26, 2024, alleging fraudulent transactions involving multiple bank accounts within and outside the bank.

Investigations uncovered that Adeyinka, who once worked in the bank’s Settlement Office, exploited his privileged position to orchestrate a complex financial fraud.

According to EFCC counsel Zeenat Atiku, Adeyinka manipulated settlement accounts by creating fictitious domiciliary inflows and transferring the Naira equivalent to himself and his associates.

To conceal the illicit funds, he converted them into US dollars and USDT (Tether cryptocurrency), channeling them through his personal dollar accounts and crypto wallets.

On November 27, 2024, Justice Owoeye issued an interim forfeiture order and directed its publication in a national newspaper to allow any interested party to contest the forfeiture.

The notice was published in The Punch newspaper on December 5, 2024, as part of legal compliance.

At the hearing on Monday, February 3, 2025, the court granted the EFCC’s application for final forfeiture.

Justice Owoeye ruled: “I have considered the application. I have examined the affidavit in support, of the written address, and the publication attached.

“The application has merit and the same is hereby granted.”

With this judgment, the forfeited funds—originally siphoned through fraudulent transactions—will now be transferred to the Federal Government.

This case underscores the EFCC’s ongoing crackdown on financial crimes and highlights the vulnerabilities in the banking sector that fraudsters continue to exploit.

.As EFCC arraigns 11 Chinese, firm for cybercrimes in Lagos

Also, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned 11 Chinese nationals and a company, Genting International Co. Ltd., before the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, over alleged cybercrimes and financial fraud.

The defendants, identified as Liu Ke Fan, Huang Hai Tao, Zhang Jian Feng, Wua Wang, Xiao Xin, Wang Hong Lin, Wu Yong An (a.k.a. Zenga Niu), Chen Yuan (a.k.a. Xiao Doa), Chen Dong Dong (a.k.a. Cun Zhao), Weng Mao Rong (a.k.a. A Xiang and Wang), and Xiong Wei (a.k.a. Xiao Bai), were arrested on December 10, 2024, during the EFCC’s surprise operation dubbed “Eagle Flush.”

According to the EFCC’s statement, signed by its Head of Media & Publicity, Dele Oyewale, the suspects were part of a syndicate of 792 individuals allegedly involved in cryptocurrency investment scams and romance fraud.

The accused persons face multiple charges, including cyber-terrorism, possession of fraudulent documents, identity theft, and cybercrimes.

One of the charges alleges that the defendants accessed computer systems to disrupt Nigeria’s economy and social structure, violating the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act of 2015 (as amended in 2024) and the Terrorism (Prevention and Prohibition) Act of 2022.

Another charge specifically accuses Liu Ke Fan of fraudulently impersonating a 28-year-old American woman named “Lina” on a dating platform to defraud unsuspecting victims. He allegedly used a company-issued Maya desktop computer at an office located at No. 7, Oyin Jolayemi Street, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Additionally, Wang Gong Lin is accused of providing false information to EFCC officers during the investigation, allegedly using a fake name to mislead authorities.

All defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges. In response, the EFCC’s prosecution counsel, M.K. Bashir, requested trial dates and urged the court to remand the defendants in custody.

Justice C.J. Aneke adjourned the case to February 21 and March 7, 2025, for trial.

In the meantime, the accused have been remanded at the Ikoyi Correctional Centre.

This case underscores the EFCC’s ongoing crackdown on cyber-related crimes, particularly those involving foreign syndicates operating within Nigeria.