The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned a 19-year-old woman, Marian Elia, and her 21-year-old boyfriend, Izuchukwu Uzoma, over the alleged theft of N35.92 million belonging to a woman, Mrs Esther Ogbeifun, in Edo State.
The defendants were arraigned before Justice C. A. Obiozor of the Federal High Court on a seven-count charge bordering on alleged cybercrime, conspiracy and stealing.
According to the EFCC, investigations revealed that Elia, who grew up in Ogbeifun’s home, allegedly used her access to the woman’s phones and banking information to transfer money from her account into that of Uzoma.
The commission alleged that the transfers, which took place between March 8 and July 29, 2026, amounted to N35,920,000 and that the defendants subsequently converted the money to their personal use.
One of the charges alleged that Elia used a Moniepoint Personal Banking application linked to Ogbeifun’s account to transfer the money into an account domiciled with United Bank for Africa (UBA) and operated by Uzoma.
The charge stated that the alleged act resulted in financial loss to Ogbeifun and violated Section 33(2)(c) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015, as amended in 2024.
The defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges when they were read to them in court.
Following their pleas, prosecution counsel, I. M. Elodi, asked the court to fix a date for trial and order that the defendants be remanded in a correctional facility.
Justice Obiozor subsequently ordered their remand at the Benin Correctional Centre, Benin City, and adjourned the case until December 7, 2026, for hearing.
The allegations against Elia and Uzoma remain to be proved in court.
