The Federal High Court in Lagos has fixed Monday, January 20, 2025, for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC), to arraign the Chairman of Honeywell Group, Chief Oba Otudeko and a former First Bank MD, Stephen Olabisi Onasanya, for allegedly looting ₦12.3billion from First Bank.
Otudeko – former Chairman of First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) Holdings – and Onasanya are to be arraigned alongside a former Board member of Honeywell, Soji Akintayo and a firm, Anchorage Leisure Ltd. connected to Otudeko.
According to the EFCC, the four committed the fraud in tranches of ₦5.2billion, ₦6.2bn, ₦6.150bn, ₦1.5bn and ₦500million, between 2013 and 2014, in Lagos.
The 13-count charge, filed by EFCC counsel, Bilikisu Buhari, on January 16, 2025, further claimed that the defendants made and uttered forged documents to deceive the bank. According to the Commission, the offences contravened Section 8(a) of Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006 and was punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.
Otudeko, Onasanya, Akintayo and Anchorage will be brought before Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke, to whom the case, registered as FHC/L/20C/2025, been assigned.
