A former banker at First City Monument Bank (FCMB), Nwachukwu Placidus, has been handed a total of 121 years in prison for committing fraud.
He was found guilty of diverting over N112 million from a customer’s fixed deposit funds for personal use.
The prosecutor-the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) said on Saturday that Placidus was arraigned before Justice S. N. Odili of the Anambra State High Court on Tuesday, March 27, 2018, on several charges, including forgery, stealing, and obtaining by false pretence,
The defendant’s former employer, FCMB alleged that Placidus, while serving as the Branch manager of FCMB in Onitsha, received funds for a fixed deposit but failed to remit them as claimed.
Following an investigation, the EFCC found out that Placidus diverted the money for personal use and provided a fake fixed deposit certificate to the Bank.
“One of the counts read, “Nwachukwu Placidus between February 2009 and November 2014 in Onitsha, Anambra State within the jurisdiction of the Anambra State High Court of Nigeria with intent to defraud obtained the sum of (N112,100,000) One hundred and twelve million, one hundred thousand naira only, from Idemili Microfinance Bank under the false pretence that you have placed the said money in a fixed deposit account with First City Monument Bank PLC for it, which pretence you knew to be false and you thereby committed an offence”.
He pleaded not guilty to the charges.
In the judgment, Justice Odili sentenced Placidus to varying terms on fourteen of the charges but was acquitted on two. The sentences will run concurrently.
