Court Orders Final Forfeiture of N1.2bn Stolen from Sterling Bank

Justice D.I. Dipeolu of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, has ordered the final forfeiture of N1,292,798,746.81 to the Federal Government of Nigeria, in favour of Sterling Bank Plc.

The forfeited funds were criminally withdrawn by certain individuals following a system glitch at Sterling Bank. The bank had petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), alleging a theft of N2.5 billion. Investigations traced the stolen funds to several accounts.

The amounts forfeited were located in the following accounts:

• M. Sharif Inter-Trading and Marketing Co. Ltd (UBA): N900,000,000
• Mustapha Abubakar (UBA): N255,872,842.84
• Mustapha Sharif Abubakar (UBA): N12,195,093
• Mustapha Sharif Abubakar (Jaiz Bank): N41,119,917.13
• Abubakar Mustapha Sharif (First Bank): N19,069,567.73
• Mustapha Sharif Abubakar (Sterling Imal): N30,850,158.12

The EFCC filed a motion on notice on January 8, 2025, seeking the final forfeiture of the funds. The court had previously granted an interim forfeiture order on March 12, 2025, and directed its publication in The Punch newspaper on March 24, 2025, for any interested parties to show cause.

EFCC counsel Hannatu U. KofarNaisa argued that the funds were proceeds of unlawful activities. After reviewing the motion and its attachments, Justice Dipeolu ruled in favour of the EFCC, declaring the application meritorious.

Accordingly, the court ordered the final forfeiture of the N1.2 billion to the Federal Government, to the benefit of Sterling Bank Plc.