A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos has heard chilling testimony regarding how a former branch manager of Zenith Bank Plc, Fidelis Egueke, allegedly threatened the life of his brother-in-law and benefactor, Dr Jude Ndudi, following a dispute over missing company funds totalling nearly half a billion Naira.
The trial, which has seen a revolving door of four different judges, resumed last Tuesday before Justice Owoeye.
Egueke is facing a 16-count amended charge filed by the Force Criminal Investigation Department (ForceCID), Annexe Alagbon-Ikoyi, bordering on conspiracy, unlawful conversion, obtaining money by false pretence, and unauthorised withdrawal.
Led in evidence by prosecution counsel, Morufu Ajani Animashaun, Dr Ndudi recounted the terrifying moment he confronted the defendant regarding the repayment of the alleged stolen funds.
Ndudi told the court that when he informed Egueke of his intention to file a petition against him in Port Harcourt, the response was a direct threat of violence.
“When I told him that I would be coming to Port Harcourt for a petition against him, he told me that my sister and I should dress in a 'bulletproof vest' and we should come in a 'bulletproof vehicle',” Dr Ndudi testified.
The witness expressed his shock at the threat, noting the extensive financial support he had previously provided to the defendant.
“I told him that I’m the same person who gifted his wife a brand-new Mercedes-Benz. That I'm the same person who obtained a United States visa for him, his wife, and children, and paid for a cruise to the Caribbean.
“Even the suit that he was wearing the day he threatened me, I bought for him,” the witness posited.
The court also heard details of how the defendant allegedly used the name of a prominent Delta State politician, Great Ogboru, to siphon funds.
Ndudi testified that Egueke claimed Ogboru had promised him the position of Commissioner of Finance in a future administration, contingent on financial contributions.
Based on this claim, Ndudi allegedly gave the defendant N20 million to help cement his political appointment.
Furthermore, Egueke allegedly secured a N100 million loan from the businessman under the guise that Ogboru had a ship fully loaded with fish in Port Harcourt and needed liquidity.
“He said I should not worry about how the money will be paid because he is in control of Ogboru's N1.7bn in Zenith Bank,” Ndudi told the court.
The businessman revealed that the scale of the alleged fraud was uncovered after hiring a forensic auditor, Chief Ori, who also discovered that over N179 million was allegedly diverted directly by Egueke from the company account.
The witness equally stated that N180 million was unaccounted for in an account opened for Ndudi’s sister, and a separate N7.9 million payment from SUBEB Asaba was allegedly wiped out within a month, leaving only N1,000.
In a bizarre twist during the police investigation phase at Alagbon, Ndudi alleged that the defendant destroyed evidence in front of officers.
“The defendant stated that he did not want any written agreements because it would jeopardise his job. After we failed to reach an agreement, he requested his statement that he submitted to the police and chewed it,” Ndudi testified.
According to the witness, Egueke stated: “This is not America, this is Nigeria, nothing will happen. I'm a big boy.
“I will just hire some Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) and senior lawyers to take care of the judges.”
When Ndudi threatened to report him to the police in Asaba, Egueke allegedly bragged that no police officer in the state would prosecute him because he had been a bank manager there for 20 years and had "settled" top officers, including a former ADC to a state governor.
All rights reserved. The content on this website, including text and other digital materials, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed, in whole or in part, without the express written consent of The News Accelerator Network.
For advertising inquiries, news coverage, or press releases, please get in touch with us at
📧 thenewsacceleratornetwork@gmail.com
📞 08051017159, 08173970030
Kindly follow us on: https://www.facebook.com/thenewsaccelerator
You can also subscribe to our YouTube channels here: UCVELRC3WinKZ7tdmhmZaRmQhttps://www.youtube.com/channel/?sub_confirmation=1
إرسال تعليق