Edo Court Jails Man Over ₦1.5bn Bank Fraud
The Edo State High Court sitting in Benin City has convicted and sentenced Ojo Eghosa Kingsley for fraud involving over ₦1.5 billion belonging to First Bank Plc.
Kingsley was convicted on Monday, January 19, 2026, by Justice W. I. Aziegbemhin following his prosecution by the Benin Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). He was charged on a one-count offence of stealing, after fraudulently converting ₦1,507,502,182.24 erroneously credited to his First Bank account between June and November 2025.
The charge, brought under Section 387(1) of the Criminal Code Law of Edo State, 2022 and punishable under Section 394 of the same law, was read to the defendant, who pleaded guilty. Prosecuting counsel, M. S. Dahiru, urged the court to convict and sentence him accordingly, while defence counsel appealed for leniency, citing the defendant’s remorse.
Justice Aziegbemhin sentenced Kingsley to one year imprisonment or a fine of ₦5 million. The court further ordered him to restitute First Bank Plc with the balance of ₦272,252,193.59 within a stipulated period.
During investigations, the EFCC recovered ₦802,420,000 from bank accounts linked to the defendant, his mother, and sister, which was handed over to the bank on January 12, 2026. An additional sum of over ₦300 million was recovered by the bank through transfer reversal. The defendant also undertook in writing to be of good behaviour going forward.
