A Kaduna State High Court presided over by Justice A. Isiaka has convicted and sentenced Nureedeen Siraj to two years imprisonment for fraudulently diverting N3.4 million from Zenith Bank Plc.
The convict was arraigned by the Kaduna Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), on a one-count charge of theft.
According to the EFCC, Siraj illegally accessed the bank’s portal using a rogue code and transferred the sum of N3,400,000.00 (Three Million, Four Hundred Thousand Naira), into his personal Zenith Bank account without authorization.
The charge read in part: “That you, Nureedeen Siraj ‘M’, sometime in December 2022, in Kaduna State within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, dishonestly took out of the possession of Zenith Bank Plc the sum of N3,400,000.00 (Three Million, Four Hundred Thousand Naira) only into your Zenith Bank Plc account without the consent of Zenith Bank Plc, thereby committed Theft, an offence contrary to Section 270(1) of the Penal Code Law, 2017 of Kaduna State and punishable under Section 271 of the same law.”
Upon arraignment, Siraj pleaded guilty to the charge. His plea prompted the prosecuting counsel, Y.J. Matiyak, to urge the court to convict him accordingly. The defence counsel, Fatima Ustaz, did not object.
In his judgment, Justice Isiaka sentenced Siraj to two years imprisonment with an option of a N300,000 (Three Hundred Thousand Naira) fine. He also ordered the restitution of the full sum of N3.4 million to Zenith Bank, representing the proceeds of the fraudulent activity.
Siraj’s journey to justice began following credible intelligence received by the EFCC, which led to his arrest and subsequent prosecution.
The EFCC reiterated its commitment to tracking and prosecuting individuals involved in cyber-enabled financial crimes across the country.
