BY OUR COURT REPORTER
TOP BANKERS from the United Bank of Africa, UBA are on the run after failing to show up for a massive £2million fraud trial in Lagos.
High-flying execs from UBA—one of the continent’s biggest lenders—sparked a courtroom drama on Monday when they pulled a disappearing act.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) hauled the bank and its associates to court over a staggering ₦4.29 billion (approx. £2.1m) “racketeering” scandal.
Prosecutor T. J. Banjo told a stunned judge that defendants Muyiwa Akinyemi and Amangbo Eziashi Stephen were fully aware they were due in the dock—but have since bolted.
”They are currently on the run,” Banjo told Justice Rahman Oshodi at the Lagos State Special Offences Court.
The legal eagle admitted he was “surprised” by the empty seats, insisting the accused had been served their papers but chose to skip town instead of facing the music.
The group, along with firms Gesos Global Service and Fedat Global, face a rap sheet of charges including:
Forex Malpractice: Selling foreign currency at illegal “black market” rates.
Money Laundering: Cleaning dirty cash through the system.
Fraudulent Conversion: Allegedly swiping over ₦4.2 billion from Energy Shield Petrochemical Ltd.
Investigators claim the gang conspired to flog foreign exchange at sky-high rates, ignoring the Central Bank of Nigeria’s rules, before laundering the loot between 2022 and 2023.
Justice Oshodi wasn’t impressed by the no-show and has adjourned the case. But the heat is on—the defendants have until April 21 to surface, or they could face even more legal trouble.
The EFCC is now scrambling to file fresh applications to prove the suspects knew they were meant to be in court.
