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The Nigeria Police on Wednesday indicted Sterling Bank, a Money Deposit Bank, over alleged money laundering, fraudulent deductions, and other financial crimes involving its staff members.
This development was disclosed in a report presented to the House of Representatives Committee on Public Petitions during a hearing on a petition filed by Maiden Systems Ltd against Sterling Bank, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and Shell Petroleum in Abuja.
Maiden Systems Ltd had accused Sterling Bank of mismanagement, fraudulent debits, and misappropriation of funds from its account domiciled with the bank.
Presenting the police findings, representatives of the Inspector General of Police, Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) Kabiru Yahaya and CSP Sunny Amison, disclosed that after extensive investigations and arrests, the bank was found culpable in the alleged financial misconduct.
“We were tasked with investigating claims of mismanagement, fraudulent debits, and misappropriation of funds from the account of Maiden Systems Ltd with Sterling Bank,” CSP Amison said.
Key Findings
According to the police report, the investigation revealed several irregularities, including the non-issuance of account statements, fraudulent debits, and questionable fund transfers.
“In the course of our investigation, we discovered four accounts operated by Sterling Bank for Maiden Systems Ltd—two U.S. dollar accounts and two Nigerian naira accounts. Major remittances were being made into these accounts by Shell Petroleum Development Company. However, Shell failed to provide financial reports for 2021 through 2024,” Amison explained.
He added, “The account officer claimed the company was receiving statements electronically or via SMS, but there is no proof to substantiate this claim. Additionally, the bank-generated statements examined during the investigation revealed significant discrepancies and questionable debits.”
Unexplained Transactions
CSP Amison highlighted irregular loan repayments made from Maiden Systems Ltd’s account, amounting to millions of dollars.
“We discovered a Debt Service Repayment Account (DSRA) used for servicing a $30 million loan originally offered in 2012 and restructured in 2017. Between September 2016 and January 2017, approximately $28.3 million was debited from the company’s account for loan repayment, but the bank provided no clear explanation for these transactions,” he said.
He detailed specific instances, including:
- September 29, 2016: $2,413,000 debited for loan repayment.
- November 14, 2016: $1.256 million debited.
- January 16, 2017: $28,302,140.59 debited.
“Despite repeated requests, the bank failed to provide evidence or clarification from the account officers managing these transactions. The discrepancies in figures provided by the bank’s executive director and account officers further complicated the investigation,” Amison noted.
The police report also raised concerns about in-branch transfers and account-to-account transactions, suggesting potential money laundering activities.
Committee’s Assurance
In response, the Chairman of the Committee on Public Petitions, Mike Etaba, assured all parties that the report would be thoroughly reviewed and justice would be served.
“At the committee level, we will study the police report carefully, and I assure all parties that justice will prevail,” Etaba said.
