Two ex-bank directors in court over alleged $166m fraud

Two former directors of the defunct Integrated Microfinance Bank Plc. were granted bail on Thursday by a Federal High Court in Lagos over alleged $166 million fraud.
The accused persons Ademola Akinteye (Managing Director) and Gabriel Adepoju, (Director), are facing a 10-count charge bordering on fraud.
They, however, pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The trial judge, Justice Mojisola Olatoregun, granted them bail in the sum of N10 million each with two sureties each in like sum.
The judge also ordered that the two sureties must not be lower than executive directors in a known financial institution.
 He also ordered that the sureties must depose to an affidavit of means with evidence of three years tax payment.
The court, however, ordered their remand in custody pending the perfection of their bail terms and fixed June 16 for substantive trial of the accused.
In the charge marked, FHC/L/234c/16, the accused were alleged to have recklessly and without collateral, approved credit facilities to themselves to the tune of over 166 million dollars and N33.3 million.
The first accused, Akinteye, was alleged to have at different times withdrawn N11 million from the bank’s account and diverted it into a company’s account named, Deblad Nigeria Ltd.
He was also alleged to have unlawfully withdrawn about 166 million dollars and remitted same to the account of one Temitope Muhammed.
The second accused, Adepoju, was alleged to have withdrawn N22.3 million and diverted same to a company named, Gad Press Ltd.
According to the prosecutor, A. I. Charles-Okoli, the offences contravened the provisions of Sections 18 (1)(a) and 18(3) of the Banks and other Financial Institution Act Laws of the Federation 2004.
The defence counsel, Mr A. O. Sheriff, had earlier urged the court to dismiss the charges against the two accused.
Sheriff argued that the accused had previously been acquitted by Justice Okon Abang of the same court.
Olatoregun, however, dismissed Sheriff’s objection, stating that the facts of the charges were not the same.