Bank staff docked for diverting customer’s money

A banker with Fidelity Bank, Ibadan, Kehinde Olumide Agbabiaka has been arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for allegedly diverting N137 million belonging to a customer of the bank.

According to the anti-graft agency, Agbabiaka was arrested after a petition was jointly sent by the bank’s Regional Security Officer and the Cluster Control and Compliance Manager, where it was alleged that the suspect, allegedly suppressed, diverted and stole a total sum of N137 million from personal and corporate accounts of a customer in Ibadan.

The petition, filed on the 29th of August, 2019, alleged that Agbabiaka committed the offence between January 2017 and July 2019.

The suspect, said to be the account officer attached to the customer, was said to be visiting the business premises of the victim weekly to collect cash with the understanding that he would remit same to his accounts domiciled in the bank’s Challenge, Ibadan branch.

However, Agbabiaka, instead of depositing the money, was said to have at different times remitted only a portion and on many occasions diverted the whole sum to personal use, covering his criminal acts by issuing fictitious bank slips to deceive the customer that he truly deposited the sums.

This, the petition said, continued until the customer reviewed the statement of his account and reconciled the same with the cash collection register. It was then they discovered Agbabiaka’s fraudulent deeds, prompting the bank to put up the petition.

EFCC investigators are said to have established a prima facie case of diversion and stealing against the suspect.

Further investigations equally revealed that Agbabiaka had used the suppressed sums to build houses, purchase cars, and invest in fixed deposits and insurance policies. He also gave part of the loot to people as friendly loans.

According to the EFCC, some of the items have been recovered and registered as exhibits.