Operatives of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) last week Friday, discovered N258 million stashed away in the vault at the head office of Sterling Bank Plc in Abuja.
The spokesperson for the agency, Mrs. Azuka Ogugua, disclosed this in a late night statement on Tuesday.
She said the discovery was made last week Friday.
She stated that when the ICPC monitoring team visited the bank and discovered the new naira notes in the bank’s vault, it was informed that the cash was the remnant of what the CBN had given the bank for distribution to its branches.
“The team however found out that only the sum of N5 million each was distributed to their various branches.
“Both the regional and service managers were arrested and later granted administrative bail while investigation continues,” she said.
Similarly, she said the commission arrested of the head of operations, Keystone Bank, Mararaba in Nasarawa State for frustrating its customers at getting the new naira notes.
Ogugua when the ICPC team was on its routine operation, it found that the automated teller machines at the branch were not dispensing to its customers, while other bank customers were accessing only N1000 notes.
She said it was only after the arrest was made and clarification received from the CBN that the position of the officers of the bank was not correct that the ATMs started dispensing N5, 000 to non-customers and N10, 000 to its customers.
The team also arrested one Abdulkareem Shaibu, a security guard with Zenith Bank, 3rd Avenue Gwarimpa, as well as Ali Adam and Shafiu Umar.
While Shaibu, the security guard was arrested for being in possession of five ATM cards which he was using to collect money for different unknown persons who were not within the bank premises at that time, Adam and Umar were arrested in front of Zenith Bank, 1st Avenue Gwarimpa, for selling the new Naira notes.
The ICPC spokesperson further disclosed that two officials of the FCMB Ogo-Oluwa, Osogbo were arrested for assault of officers of the ICPC and CBN Cash Swap Monitoring Team.
“The team, on a follow-up visit to ascertain the bank’s compliance level, was assaulted right inside the Branch Manager’s office by the bank officials who vehemently refused to allow ICPC carry out its lawful duty, and then held hostage for about two hours.
“By the time the reinforcement of police and NSCDC officers arrived the scene of the incident, the masterminds of the assaults had gone into hiding, leading to the arrest of two bank officers who were also complicit,” she added.
