Nwachukwu Placidus, a former manager at First City Monument Bank’s Onitsha branch, has been sentenced to a total of 121 years in prison for diverting fixed deposit funds amounting to N112,100,000 from a customer for personal gain. This judgment was delivered by Justice S. N. Odili of the Anambra State High Court in Onitsha, following Placidus’s arraignment by the Enugu Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Placidus faced 16-count charges including forgery, theft, obtaining by pretense, and uttering. One of the counts detailed his fraudulent activity between February 2009 and November 2014, during which he obtained N112,100,000 from Idemili Microfinance Bank by falsely claiming to have placed the money in a fixed deposit account with FCMB.

Despite pleading not guilty, the trial proceeded, and the EFCC presented witnesses and evidence supporting the charges. Justice Odili found the prosecution’s case to be strong and sentenced Placidus to imprisonment: nine years on count 3, four years on count 4, and nine years each on counts 5 to 16, all to run concurrently. Placidus was acquitted on counts 1 and 2 but was instructed to repay the embezzled sum to Idemili Microfinance Bank.

The investigation into Placidus’s actions began when Idemili Microfinance Bank alleged that despite depositing the funds with Placidus for a fixed deposit, FCMB denied having received the funds. Further investigation revealed that Placidus diverted the money for personal use and provided the bank with a counterfeit Fixed Deposit Certificate.