A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, on Thursday, convicted a former Managing Director of Nigerian Export Import (NEXIM) Bank, Mr Roberts Orya, on a 49-count fraud charge the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) preferred against him.
The court, in the judgment delivered by Justice F.E. Messiri, found the defendant guilty on all counts of the charge, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years on each count.
Even though the 49 counts cumulatively amounted to 490 years’ imprisonment, the court held that the sentences should run concurrently, implying that the defendant would spend only 10 years in jail.
The EFCC arraigned the convicted bank MD before the court in 2021 for obtaining money by false pretences, forgery, and advance fee fraud to the tune of N2.4 billion.
Some of the counts in the charge against him, read: “That you Mr Roberts Orya while being the Managing Director of Nigerian Export- Import Bank(NEXIM BANK) on or about the 21st day of September 2011 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, with intent to defraud induced Nigerian Export-lmport Bank to pay to Treasuremix Contruction Limited the sum of Four Hundred and Eighty Eight Million Naira (N488,000,000) as loan under the pretence that the Directors of Luxurium Leisure Services Limited applied for and are the beneficiaries of the said loan which pretence you knew was false and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 1(1)(b) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.”
“That you Mr Roberts Orya while being the Managing Director of Nigerian Export- Import Bank (NEXIM BANK) on or about the 19th February 2013 in Abuja within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, with intent to defraud induced Nigerian Export-Import Bank to pay to Treasuremix Construction Limited the sum of Six Hundred and Thirty Million Naira (N630,000,000) as loan under the pretence that the Directors of Luxurium Leisure Services Limited applied for and are the beneficiaries of the said loan, which pretence you knew was false and thereby committed an offence contrary to Section 1(1) (b) of Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related And Other Related Offences Act 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.”
However, he pleaded not guilty to the charge, even as the court released him on bail until the matter was concluded on Thursday.
To prove the case, the anti-graft agency, through its lawyer, Mr. Samuel Ugwuebulam, produced seven witnesses whose testimonies led to a guilty verdict handed down by the court.
In his judgement, Justice Messiri held that the prosecution proved its case beyond every reasonable doubt.
The convict served as the managing director of NEXIM Bank between 2009 and 2016.
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