Man sentenced to two years in prison for spending ₦21.9m mistakenly credited to his account

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has secured the conviction of a man, Chinedu Francis Nwabuisi, who was sentenced to two years in prison for spending ₦21.9 million mistakenly credited to his bank account.

The commission disclosed this in a statement issued on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, explaining that the money was erroneously transferred into Nwabuisi’s account following a system glitch at First Bank Plc.

According to the EFCC, Justice Irele Ifijeh of the Edo State High Court sitting in Benin City found Nwabuisi guilty of converting the money to his personal use.

The defendant was arraigned by the EFCC’s Benin Zonal Directorate after allegedly spending the sum of ₦21,939,237.27, which was mistakenly credited to his account.

During the trial, prosecution counsel, M.S. Dahiru, presented two witnesses, including a senior First Bank official and an EFCC operative. Several documents were also tendered as exhibits and admitted by the court.

In his defence, Nwabuisi reportedly told the court that he believed the money was proceeds from his Point of Sale (POS) business dealings with the bank.

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However, after considering the evidence presented, Justice Ifijeh convicted him and handed him a two-year prison sentence without an option of fine.

The court also ordered Nwabuisi to refund First Bank Plc the sum of ₦21,939,732.27 as restitution.

“Justice Irele Ifijeh of Edo State High Court sitting in Benin City has convicted and sentenced Chinedu Francis Nwabuisi to two years imprisonment without an option of fine for converting to personal use, the sum of over ₦21.9 million erroneously credited to his bank account.”

The conviction has drawn attention to the consequences of spending money mistakenly transferred into a bank account rather than reporting the error and returning the funds.

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