Justice Yelim Bogoro of the Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered the final forfeiture of N81,108,143.8, part of the N2.5 billion fraudulently obtained from Sterling Bank Plc, to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The order followed an application filed by counsel to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Hannatu KofarNaisa.
Earlier, on October 2, 2025, the court granted an interim forfeiture order and directed that the decision be published in a national newspaper to allow any interested parties to show cause why the funds should not be permanently forfeited.
According to the EFCC, several customers of Sterling Bank moved the funds into their accounts due to a system glitch and used the money for personal transactions and transfers to third parties.
The commission stated that investigations began after the bank filed a petition on July 18, 2022. The probe traced part of the stolen funds to several accounts, including that of Sulaiman Kehinde Ojora, who was identified as a major beneficiary of the fraud.
Further findings revealed that Ojora allegedly concealed N43 million in a friend’s account with Access Bank Plc and N122.2 million in his wife’s account with Sterling Bank.
In an affidavit supporting the application, EFCC investigator Maina Gapani Gyal explained that more than N2.5 billion was illegally transferred through a system glitch that allowed transactions via the PAYATTITUDE Global Ltd platform, even though the originating accounts were not funded.
Gyal also disclosed that the bank was unable to recover N295.9 million, which had already been withdrawn or transferred into accounts belonging to Taiwo Oluwaseyi Alawode and Aminat Olatanwa Ojora.
He added that the EFCC is seeking the final forfeiture of the recovered N81,108,143.8, along with N490.35 million reflected in the bank’s internal records, arguing that the funds are likely proceeds of unlawful activities.
After reviewing the application, Justice Bogoro ruled in favour of the EFCC and ordered that the recovered money be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government in favour of Sterling Bank Plc.
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