By MBAFAN ADE, Abuja –
Two former employees of Access Bank have been sentenced to seven years imprisonment after admitting to stealing funds from hundreds of customers — but can avoid jail by paying a ₦50,000 fine each.
The convictions followed a prosecution by the Kaduna Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), before Justice A.A. Bello of the Kaduna State High Court.
The convicted ex-bank staff: Obadofin Daniel Bamise and Hadiza Oyiza Yakubu, were found guilty of carrying out unauthorised withdrawals from customer accounts while working at Access Bank’s Kaduna branch between November 5, 2024, and January 23, 2025.
According to the EFCC, the fraudulent withdrawals affected no fewer than 305 customers. Bamise was charged with stealing ₦433,000 belonging to the bank, while Yakubu faced charges over the theft of ₦806,800.
Both defendants pleaded guilty to the separate one-count theft charges filed against them.
Following their guilty pleas, prosecution counsel Moses Arumemi urged the court to convict and sentence them in line with the law. Justice Bello subsequently sentenced both to seven years imprisonment each, with an option of a ₦50,000 fine.
EFCC investigations revealed that the fraud extended far beyond isolated acts of theft. According to the anti-graft agency, the convicted former bank workers orchestrated unauthorised withdrawals from the accounts of 305 beneficiaries of the Federal Government’s Palliative Scheme — funds meant to cushion the hardship faced by vulnerable Nigerians.
In total, ₦7,842,700 was siphoned from the victims’ accounts and allegedly routed through coordinators connected to the scheme, exposing what investigators believe was a calculated abuse of trust within the banking system.
The verdict has since triggered outrage and renewed scrutiny over insider fraud in Nigeria’s financial sector. For many Nigerians, the biggest shock is not only the scale of the theft, but the punishment: a mere ₦50,000 fine option for each convict despite the millions stolen from citizens already struggling to survive. The outcome has fueled growing public concern about accountability, deterrence, and whether justice truly reflects the gravity of crimes committed against the country’s most vulnerable people.
