Femi Ashekun/
A Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered the remand of a serving First City Monument Bank (FCMB) Plc Service Administrator, Gideon Bakpa Aghogho, and a former employee of the bank, Oscar Ebere Chukwuebuka, over allegations that they conspired with another person to gain unauthorised access to the bank’s computer systems and facilitate the fraudulent removal of $25,000.
Justice Friday Ogazi ordered that the two defendants be remanded in the custody of the Nigerian Correctional Service following their arraignment by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on charges bordering on conspiracy, cybercrime, unauthorised access to a computer system and fraud.
The prosecution alleged that the offences were committed in Lagos between July 24 and 26, 2026, in collaboration with a third suspect identified as Scott, who is said to be at large.
Prosecuting counsel, Bilikisu Buhari-Bala, told the court that the defendants conspired to gain unauthorised access to FCMB’s server and fraudulently remove $25,000.
According to the prosecution, Aghogho, who had access to the bank’s internal systems by virtue of his position as Service Administrator, allegedly released his access code to Chukwuebuka.
The credential, identified as a local Administrative Credential (ITSD), was allegedly used to gain access to the bank’s Virtual Centre Platform.
The prosecution further alleged that the access credentials included information capable of providing entry into the bank’s systems, including server IP and domain credentials. It alleged that the defendants’ actions enabled others involved in the scheme to gain access to FCMB’s database.
According to the charges, the alleged arrangement involved financial benefits of $15,000 for Aghogho and $10,000 for Chukwuebuka.
The prosecution separately alleged that after the fraudulent transaction was completed, Aghogho retained $2,000 while Chukwuebuka received $400 from the proceeds.
The prosecution said the alleged offences contravened provisions of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, Etc) Act 2015, as amended in 2024, as well as the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022.
Aghogho denied the allegations and pleaded not guilty. Chukwuebuka, however, pleaded guilty to the charges against him.
Following the pleas, Justice Ogazi adjourned the matter until August 27, 2026, for review of the facts relating to the charges against Chukwuebuka.
The judge ordered that both defendants remain in custody pending the next adjourned date.
Before the arraignment, lawyers representing the defendants, N. Egah and Livingstone Madu, told the court that their clients were willing to enter into plea bargain arrangements. The prosecution, however, said it was unaware of any such arrangement.
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