Bala Ibrahim’s Corporate Account Targeted in Alleged Fraudulent Scheme in Lagos
Lagos, Nigeria – Bala Ibrahim, an account holder with Keystone Bank, expressed his dismay after N5.9 million was illegally withdrawn from his account, allegedly orchestrated by the former manager of a branch in the Agege area of Lagos State, Tijani Saleh.
According to reports, Ibrahim initiated the opening of a corporate account with Keystone Bank and deposited a substantial sum of N20 million into it. Subsequently, Ibrahim found himself in urgent need of N5.9 million to finance ongoing projects for his company. However, he had not yet received a cheque to facilitate the withdrawal from his corporate account.
Eager to access the required funds, Ibrahim sought advice from the bank manager on available options for withdrawing the money. He claimed that the manager requested the letter-headed paper of his company in order to process the request.
To Ibrahim’s astonishment, events took an unexpected turn when the bank manager allegedly exploited the company’s letter-headed paper without his consent, subsequently initiating an unauthorized withdrawal of N5.9 million from Ibrahim’s corporate account.
Upon discovering the unapproved transaction while examining his account statement, Ibrahim immediately raised the alarm. After becoming aware of the manager’s actions, Keystone Bank promptly terminated his employment.
Despite being aware of the manager’s involvement in the illicit withdrawal, Ibrahim expressed frustration as the bank has yet to refund his money.
As investigations into the case continue, concerned customers and industry experts are calling for enhanced security measures and stricter protocols within banking institutions to protect customer funds from such fraudulent incidents.
“I then reported the matter to the EFCC but the matter was turned against me and I was charged to court. We spent over five years on the case before I was finally discharged and acquitted.”
Ibrahim said after the case was concluded, the EFCC failed to charge the bank to court or compel them to pay him the money.
“They accused me of withdrawing the money and yet claimed for a reversal. I wrote several letters to make them reverse the money. They have refused. I wrote the EFCC to charge them to court as they did to me but they refused. All I want is my money back,” he said.
Reacting, the spokesperson for Keystone Bank Plc, Edward Ettu, in an email said a forensic report showed that Ibrahim withdrew the money through a counter cheque.
Ettu partly stated, “When the matter was reported to the police, they went further to investigate the N20m lodged into the account of the customer. The customer refused to allow his fingerprints, amongst others, to be taken but eventually, a forensic report showed that he was the one that withdrew the money through a counter cheque because his chequebook was not ready.
“That judgment neither said he had money with the bank nor that the bank debited his account legally. That did not come up in court at all. The same man that is asking about N5.9m filed a suit against the FG, EFCC, and the bank claiming damages to the tune of over N2 billion but did not make any claim of N5.9m against the bank.
“Up till now, there is no suit against the bank on N5.9m. Our record shows that he was the one that withdrew the money and the forensic examination conducted on his writing and signature proved that. It is not true that the bank debited his account illegally and no court order said so.”
