Union Bank of Nigeria Plc has repaid the sum of N8.7 million fraudulently withdrawn from the account of one its customers by a staff who has been jailed a year for the offence.

The customer Mr Alexander Okan, was defrauded of the said amount of money by the former banker Mr Kazeem Alli In 2018.

According to the charges filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) against Alli, had on May 8, 2018, while working as a contract staff with the bank, withdrew the said amount from the account of Okan domiciled in the bank.

The EFCC, told a Federal High Court in Lagos on Tuesday that took the money from the account by impersonating Okan and taking the money from the account marked 0010807900.

The offences according to the EFCC are contrary to and punishable under Sections 22, 22(2) and 37 of the Cyber Crimes Prohibition Act, 2015.

Before Tuesday’s hearing, Alli had pleaded not guilty to the allegations and was admitted to bail in the sum of N20 million with one surety and other conditions.

But due to the convict’s inability to meet the bail terms, he entered a plea bargain agreement with the EFCC and the three count charges were reduced to a count, which he pleaded guilty to.

During one of the hearing of the plea bargain agreement and after his arraignment on the one count charge, the presiding judge, Justice Chuka Obiozor, had asked the EFCC to produce in court others connected with the fraud but the prosecutor, Ebuka Okogwu, informed the court that others arrested in connection with the fraud had paid back some monies.

At the resumed hearing of the matter Tuesday, the prosecutor told the court that the bank, Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, had repaid the fraud victim of the said money.

The prosecutor tendered before the court the document showing that the bank had indeed repaid the victim and the document was admitted in evidence by the court.

Upon the submission of the prosecutor that the fraud victim had been restituted of the fraud sum, Justice Obiozor, allowed the plea bargain agreement dated June 6, 2019, but filed June 10, 2019 and signed by the prosecutor, the convict and his counsel, Olafimihan Ogunbiyi.

Following the admissibility of the plea bargain agreement, the prosecutor urged the court to convict and sentence the convict as charge.

However, the convict’s counsel, Ogunbiyi, in his allucutor, urged the court to tamper justice with mercy, as he was a first time offender without any previous criminal record.

Olafimihan also told the court that the convict is a father of two, who has lost his banking job due to the crime, he further pleaded that the court should let the sentencing of his client commence from October 22, 2018 when he was first arraigned.

Delivering judgment, Justice Obiozor held: “in the consequence of the plea bargain agreement of the defendant, the court is satisfied that the prosecution has duly proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.

“In accordance with section 365(2) of ACJA 2015, I therefore convict the defendant as charged. He is hereby convicted.

“I have considered the plea for mercy, I have also noted that he is a first time offender. According to sections 416(2)(b) of ACJA, 2015, the convict is hereby sentence to one year imprisonment from October 22, 2018,” The judge ruled.

The judge further held that the convict should file an undertaking of good behaviour with the EFCC.