The Enugu Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has secured the conviction and sentencing of two former bankers, Sani Endurance Aferokhe and Hillary Odo, for diverting N10.3 million belonging to pensioners and other bank customers.
The commission disclosed the development in a statement shared on its official X handle on Wednesday, stating that the judgment was delivered by Justice A. O. Onovo of the Enugu State High Court sitting in Independence Layout, Enugu.
The defendants were prosecuted by the EFCC for offences committed while they were staff of Intercontinental Bank Plc, now Access Bank Plc. They were arraigned on January 18, 2016, on a 15 count charge bordering on conspiracy, forgery, and stealing.
One of the charges stated that Aferokhe and Odo, on November 21, 2012, at Nsukka, while serving as employees of Intercontinental Bank Plc, stole N4.44 million from a customer account belonging to Udekwu F. A. O. Another charge revealed that on October 12, 2012, the duo also stole N2.11 million from an account operated by Onuora George.
The offences were said to be contrary to Section 459(a) of the Criminal Code Law, Cap 30, Laws of Enugu State, 2004. The defendants pleaded not guilty to all the charges, prompting a full trial.
During the trial, the EFCC, through its counsel, Assistant Commander of the commission, ACE II Michael Ikechukwu Ani, presented five witnesses and tendered several documents as evidence.
In its judgment delivered on Friday, December 22, 2025, the court dismissed counts six and nine. The second defendant, Odo, was convicted on counts four and seven, while the first defendant, Aferokhe, was found guilty on counts one, two, three, five, eight, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, and fifteen.
Justice Onovo sentenced Odo to five years’ imprisonment on each of counts four and seven, with an option of a N100,000 fine on each count.
Aferokhe was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment on each count, except count fifteen, which attracted a three year jail term, all with an option of a N100,000 fine per count.
The court held that the convicts conspired to unlawfully reactivate three dormant customer accounts belonging to pensioners without their consent and diverted the funds for personal use.
