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A chartered accountant, Abayomi Sofolayan, has been
sentenced to 18 months in jail for conniving with three staff of
Oceanic Bank Nigeria Plc, to defraud the Federal Inland Revenue Service
(FIRS) of N7.3 million.

The judge, Abimbola Obaseki, handed down the 18-month
jail verdict at a Markurdi Federal High Court yesterday after Mr
Sofolayan pleaded guilty to a 12-count charge of forgery, fraudulent
diversion of cheques, conspiracy and nine other related charges. The
Prosecuting Counsel, James Binang, said the accused persons, Jacob
Dzurgba, Abayomi Sofolahan, James Uwalaha, Deji Sanni, Afolabi Suleiman
(now at large) and Etuk Umo fraudulently paid the sum of N5million,
being tax payment made by Guardian Newspapers Limited, into a
fictitious FIRS Account, No. 3111750000240 with Skye Bank at Old Otukpo
Road, Makurdi, Benue State. He said they committed an offence
punishable under Section 516 of the Criminal Code Act Cap C28 Laws of
the Federation of Nigeria 2004.

According to him, the accused persons followed this
up with another attempt to steal the sum of N7.3million, being tax
payments made by Guardian Newspapers Limited into a fictitious FIRS
Account, No. 3111750000240 with Skye Bank in Makurdi, Benue State. Mr
Sofolayan already refunded the sum of N2.5 million. But for one of the
10-count charges, Mr Sofolayan was fined the sum of N100. Ms Obaseki,
however, gave him no option of fine for counts three, ten and eleven.

How it worked

Mr Binang told the court that the suspects forged a
letter, captioned ‘Application for Current Account Opening’ dated 22nd
March 2010, purportedly written and signed by Ifueko Omoigui Okauru the
Executive Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Service, addressed to the
Business Development Manager, Skye Bank Nigeria, 88 Old Otukpo Road,
Makurdi, Benue State, without lawful authority. He said the accused
persons used the letter to fraudulent open an account of the Federal
Inland Revenue Service Account No. 3111750000240 with the bank.

Emmanuel Igbokwe, the Branch Manager of Skye Bank, who represented
the bank, was asked to deposit the sum of N5 million as deposit before
he could earn his freedom. He was still being detained as at about 6 pm
yesterday. The accused staff were handed stringent bail terms. One was
that they must bring a surety who must be a civil servant of the rank
of Level 12 and above, or a businessman with property in Makurdi.