A customer of First Bank Plc, Ojo Eghosa Kingsley, has been convicted and sentenced to prison for refusing to refund over ₦1.5 billion mistakenly credited to his bank account.
Kingsley was arrested by the Benin Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) following investigations into the unlawful retention and conversion of the funds. He was arraigned on Monday, January 19, 2026, before the Edo State High Court sitting in Benin City.
Justice W. I. Aziegbemhin found Kingsley guilty after he pleaded guilty to a one-count charge of stealing and fraudulent conversion. The offence relates to the unlawful appropriation of ₦1,507,502,182.24, which was erroneously credited to his First Bank account between June and November 2025.
According to the charge, Kingsley fraudulently converted the funds, property of First Bank Plc, to his personal use, an offence contrary to Section 387(1) of the Criminal Law of Edo State, 2022, and punishable under Section 394 of the same law.
Following his guilty plea, the prosecution counsel, M. S. Dahiru, urged the court to convict and sentence the defendant accordingly. Defence counsel, however, appealed for leniency, citing the defendant’s remorse.
In his judgment, Justice Aziegbemhin convicted Kingsley and sentenced him to one year imprisonment, with an option of a ₦5 million fine. The court further ordered him to restitute First Bank Plc with the outstanding balance of ₦272,252,193.59 within a stipulated period.
The EFCC disclosed that during investigations, a total of ₦802,420,000 was recovered from bank accounts linked to the defendant, his mother, and his sister. The recovered sum was formally handed over to the bank on Monday, January 12, 2026, by the Acting Zonal Director of the Benin Zonal Directorate, Deputy Commander of the EFCC, DCE Sa’ad Hanafi Sa’ad. Additionally, the bank recovered over ₦300 million from the defendant’s account through transfer reversals.
Aside from the conviction, sentence, and restitution order, Kingsley also made a written undertaking to be of good behaviour should he meet the conditions for release from prison custody.
