A Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, has sentenced a staff member of Ecobank Nigeria Plc, Solomon Stephen Ufayo, to one year imprisonment after he was found guilty of cyber fraud amounting to N2,404,000.
Justice Yellim Bogoro handed down the verdict on Monday, June 16, 2025, following Ufayo’s guilty plea to a one-count charge leveled against him by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 2 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The EFCC had earlier arraigned Ufayo on May 16, 2025, for criminal manipulation of internal banking systems during his time as a Relief Teller at the bank. According to investigators, Ufayo impersonated a bank customer, Miss Omowunmi Ajoke, by posting fake deposits into her account — all without her knowledge or consent.
In a calculated move to siphon funds, Ufayo used forged withdrawal slips to divert N2,404,000 from Ajoke’s account into his personal Opay account, thus breaching both internal trust and federal cybercrime laws.
The charge against him reads in part:
> “That you, Solomon Stephen Ufayo, between the 10th and 28th day of March, 2025, in Lagos within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, while working for Ecobank Nigeria Limited as a Relief Teller, fraudulently represented yourself as Ogunfodunrin Omowunmi Ajoke by posting false Deposit and Withdrawal Tellers on her Ecobank account number 2801086259 with intent to gain advantage for yourself, thereby committing an offence contrary to Section 22(2)(b)(i) of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention etc) Act, 2015 and punishable under Section 22(2)(b) of the same Act.”
Prosecution counsel, Abdulhamid L. Tukur, called David Ngale Gajere, an EFCC operative, to give a detailed review of the case. Gajere testified that the defendant not only falsified records but also admitted to the crime in a written statement and offered a bank draft of N2.4 million as restitution.
In a plea for mercy, the disgraced banker told the court that financial desperation led him astray.
> “My wife was heavily pregnant, and I didn’t know where else to turn for help,” he pleaded. “I was still in custody when she gave birth. I’ve learnt my lesson.”
Justice Bogoro, in his ruling, convicted Ufayo and sentenced him to one year in prison with an option of a N500,000 fine. The court further ordered him to complete two weeks of community service as part of his punishment.
The EFCC confirmed the conviction in a statement issued Monday evening, describing the case as another victory in its relentless war against cyber and financial crimes within Nigeria’s banking institutions.
This case serves as a stern warning to insiders who may contemplate breaching the trust of the financial system. It underscores the EFCC’s commitment to pursuing offenders, regardless of their positions.
PIONEER NEWS 