A Federal High Court in Enugu State has remanded two bankers for allegedly selling minted N500,000 Naira notes to a customer following their arraignment by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission.
The suspects, identified as Ekpe Okoronkwo and Umeonuoha Onyinyewere, arraigned before Justice Mohammed Umar were remanded at the state’s correctional center pending the court adjournment date.
After reviewing arguments between the defendant’s counsel and the plaintiff on Tuesday, Umar postponed their one-count charge hearing to January 15, 2025.
The one-count charge reads, “That you, Ekpe Anayaoha Okoronkwo and Umeonuoha Onyinye, sometime in October 2024 at Enugu, Enugu state, within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court of Nigeria, did sell a total sum of Five Hundred Thousand Naira (N500,000.00) mints in Two Hundred Naira Notes (N200) denominations, issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria to one Husseini Ibrahim and thereby committed an offense contrary to Section 21 (4) of the Central Bank of Nigeria Act, 2007 and punishable under Section 21 (1) of the same Act”.
During the court proceeding, Okoronkwo pleaded guilty to the one charge against him while Onyinyechi pleaded not guilty.
Earlier, prosecution counsel Rotimi Ajobiewe requested a short adjournment to review the facts of the case pertaining to the first defendant.
“In respect of the first defendant, we pray for a date for trial to enable the prosecution to prove its case”.
However, counsel to the second defendant, Agama, requested that the court remand Onyinye in EFCC custody until the bail application is heard.
