Infractions: Court sentences ex-BankPHB MD to prison, orders refund of N25.7bn to Government

*The court rules that the convicts stole from the defunct BankPHB, depositors, and because of their action, the Federal Government used the Nigerian taxpayers’ money to bail out the bank

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

For putting his previous bank and depositors’ funds in danger while serving, a Lagos High Court sitting Wednesday, June 16, 2021, in the Ikeja area of Lagos State, has sentenced Mr. Francis Atuche, a former Managing Director of the defunct BankPHB, to over six years in prison.

ConsumerConnect gathered Justice Lateefat Okunnu, in a judgement that lasted over 10 hours, convicted Atuche with Mr. Ugo Anyanwu, a former Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the rested bank.

The court had convicted the two accused persons on at least 6 of a 27-count amended charge of conspiracy to commit a felony and stealing brought against them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in 2011.

The erstwhile BankPHB Managing Director found guilty on counts 1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and 23 of the charge would serve a 6-year term for each count, whereas Anyanwu is awarded 4-year jail term for counts 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 11, 22 and 24 of the amended charge.

They are to serve their jail term consecutively. This sentence is coming after a trial that lasted over 12 years, report said.

Justice Okunnu, in delivering her sentence, had held that the EFCC successfully proved its case against the convicts beyond a reasonable doubt.

The Justice reportedly rejected claims by the defendants, that both Atuche and Anyanwu were merely professionally negligent.

However, the court specifically held that the convicted persons really abused their powers, ignored established rules and regulations, thereby putting the bank and depositors’ funds in danger at the time.

The convicts corruptly took advantage of their positions to confer on themselves undue financial benefits without regard to the health of the bank, said the court in its ruling.

Justice Okunnu stated: “The convict stole from the bank and depositors and because of their action, taxpayers money was used to bail out the bank.”

Although the Justice pronounced that she had considered the plea of the convicts, there must be consequences for wrongdoing.

Sentences are not just for punishment but also for deterrence, the court noted.

She also ruled that the defendant should make restitution of the amount stolen from the bank.

In other words, the convicts are to pay back the sum of N25.7billion to the Federal Government to replace the funds taken from the public treasury to bail out the bank.

According to the Judge, they are to serve their jail terms at the Kirikiri Maximum Correctional Facility in Lagos.

In her ruling, Justice Okunnu however, cleared Elizabeth, Atuche’s wife, on the charge of conspiracy and stealing.

The Justice said the EFCC, nonetheless, failed to link his wife to the crime and insisted that suspicion no matter how strong cannot take the place of fact.

It was not proved that Atuche’s wife was aware of the source of the funds she received into her account from her husband, and she had no powers to take any decision to influence the transaction.

It is recalled that the EFCC had alleged that between November 2007 and April 2008, the accused persons stole about N25.7billion belonging to the now defunct BankPHB.

The anti-graft agency had also claimed that of the total N25.7billion, they stole about N14.7billion by fraudulently describing it as a loan to some companies and subsequently converted the said sum to personal use.

Atuche begs the Justice to not jail him

Meanwhile, amid the apparently tense atmosphere in the Ikeja High Court Wednesday night, Mr. Atuche, begged Justice Lateefa Okunnu not to send him to prison, following his conviction for defrauding the bank of N25.7 billion, agency report said.

It was learnt that after convicting Atuche and Anyanwu at 8:18p.m., the Justice asked if they had any plea to make, and they answered in the affirmative.

Addressing the court, Atuche begged not to be sent to jail, as he prayed Okunnu to temper justice with mercy.

He said: “All the time I was the MD of Bank PHB, I gave my all to the bank.

“Never at any material time did it occur to me that I would set up a scheme to defraud the bank.

“I plead for mercy, leniency, your kindness, and I plead that out of your kindness and generosity, you will not allow me to go to jail.

“I am sorry and remorseful.”

According to him, as a professional banker and chartered accountant, he certainly did not want to become a convict.

Atuche stated: “I pray that God will place in your heart to be kind.

“I plead from the bottom of my heart. I’m extremely sorry; today will be a turning point in my life, I’m very sorry.”

Mr. Paul Nneoma, Atuche’s counsel, in his plea for mercy, also described Atuche as a responsible family man who had never been convicted of any crime, report said.

He then, appealed to the court to give Atuche a fine instead of incarceration, in order to preserve his professional career.

Anyanwu told the court that he was the only son of a police officer who died when he was barely a year old.

He said: “What I achieved in the banking industry is by stint of hard work. I have suffered in the last 10 years of this trial.

“I am sorry if I was appearing cocky in the witness box during my examination-in-chief.

“I have two kids who are barely teenagers. They look up to their father, and I wonder what kind of impact this will have on them.

“Please temper justice with mercy.”

Mr. Silva Ogwemoh (SAN), Anyanwu’s counsel, also begged for mercy on his client.

Ogwemoh told the court, that one of Anyanwu’s children has a medical condition which requires special attention.

Anyanwu was hypertensive, stated his counsel, while urging that the court should take judicial notice of the COVID-19 pandemic and impose a fine on him instead of custodial sentence.

Mr. Kemi Pinheiro (SAN), who led the EFCC team, in his reaction to the pleas of the defendants, rather requested for a stiff sentence and an order of restitution against the two convicts.

He said that Lagos State Government has spent lots of funds and resources prosecuting the case in the past 10 years.

Pinheiro also noted: “We were taken to the Court of Appeal, the Supreme Court several times by the defendants.

“During the trial, they were rude and cocky. That is not remorse, the third defendant (Anyanwu) decided to hold onto his loyalty to his boss (Atuche) against his loyalty to the state.

“We pray the court imposes the maximum sentence and orders restitution.”

Despite their pleas for mercy, however, Justice Okunnu eventually sentenced Atuche to six years’ jail term and gave Anyanwu  four years’ imprisonment in addition to an order for restitution to the government.

The Justice restated that Atuche abused his position of trust by stealing from the bank.

She added: “By stealing from the bank, they stole from innocent customers of the bank.

“I hereby make an order of restitution against the first and third defendants to refund the sums stated in counts one to 11, 14 and 24.

“The sums are to be paid to the relevant agencies that recovered the funds on behalf of the bank.”

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