The Lagos State High Court in Ikeja has ordered the remand of two senior officials of FSDH Merchant Bank Limited over an alleged multi-currency fraud totaling over N527 million.
Bakare Oladimeji Surajudeen and James Olukayode Imokwede were arraigned on Tuesday before Justice Ismaila Ijelu by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 1 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ikoyi, on a 10-count charge of stealing and retention of stolen property.
According to the EFCC, the charges followed an internal audit by the bank, which reportedly uncovered unauthorized debits of $306,667.81 and €50,250—equivalent to N527,406,916.66—from the bank’s Letters of Credit (LC) payable accounts.
Investigations indicated that the suspects allegedly processed the fraudulent transfers through the SWIFT platform to third-party accounts.
One of the charges reads: “That you, Bakare Oladimeji Surajudeen and James Olukayode Imokwede, sometime in 2021 in Lagos within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, dishonestly took the sum of N527,406,916.66, property of FSDH Merchant Bank Limited.” Another count references the theft of $306,667.81.
The accused pleaded not guilty to all counts.
Following their plea, prosecution counsel H. U. Kofarnaisa urged the court to remand the defendants in a correctional facility pending trial.
Defence lawyers Oluwaseun Akintunde and Olajide S. Onasanya requested that their clients be admitted to bail on liberal terms and remanded in EFCC custody while bail conditions were perfected.
The prosecution opposed this request, citing overstretched EFCC detention facilities.
Justice Ijelu granted bail of N2 million each, with two sureties in like sum. One surety must be a gainfully employed relative with evidence of tax payments for the last three years and proof of livelihood, in addition to verifiable residence.
The defendants were also ordered to deposit their passports and were barred from travelling abroad without court approval.
The court remanded the bankers in a correctional facility pending perfection of bail conditions and adjourned the trial until March 25, 2026.
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