Court Orders Final Forfeiture of N1.2 Billion Stolen Through Sterling Bank System Glitch
A Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, has ordered the final forfeiture of N1,292,798,746.81 (One Billion, Two Hundred and Ninety-Two Million, Seven Hundred and Ninety-Eight Thousand, Seven Hundred and Forty-Six Naira, Eighty-One Kobo) to the Federal Government of Nigeria in favour of Sterling Bank Plc.
The order was handed down by Justice D.I. Dipeolu following a motion on notice dated January 8, 2025, and filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) through its counsel, Hannatu U. KofarNaisa.
The forfeited funds had been criminally withdrawn by a network of individuals exploiting a system glitch in Sterling Bank Plc, prompting the bank to petition the EFCC over an alleged theft totaling N2.5 billion.
Investigations by the EFCC traced the fraudulent withdrawals to several bank accounts linked to individuals and entities, including:
M Sharif Inter-Trading and Marketing Company Ltd. (UBA) – N900,000,000
Mustapha Abubakar (UBA) – N255,872,842.84
Mustapha Sharif Abubakar (UBA) – N12,195,093
Mustapha Sharif Abubakar (Jaiz Bank) – N41,119,917.13
Abubakar Mustapha Sharif (First Bank) – N19,069,567.73
Mustapha Sharif Abubakar (Sterling Imal – alternative bank) – N30,850,158.12
The court had previously granted an interim forfeiture order on March 12, 2025, and directed the EFCC to publicize the order in a national daily. The notice was published in The Punch newspaper on March 24, 2025, inviting any interested parties to show cause why the funds should not be permanently forfeited.
During the hearing for the final forfeiture, KofarNaisa informed the court that the funds were reasonably suspected to be proceeds of unlawful activities, and no objections had been received following the public notice.
After reviewing the motion and supporting documents, Justice Dipeolu ruled:
“Having gone through the motion and attachments, I find the application meritorious and same is accordingly granted.”
The court subsequently ordered the final forfeiture of the funds to the Federal Government of Nigeria, with the recovered amount to be returned in favour of Sterling Bank Plc.