Justice Adie Onyebueke of the Cross River State High Court, Akamkpa, has sentenced one Augustine Effiong Bassey to five years imprisonment for stealing N27 million, belonging to a microfinance bank, where he was a branch manager.

Effiong was prosecuted by the Enugu Zonal Office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on a one-count charge of stealing.

The charge read, “That you, Augustine Effiong Bassey, sometime between 2010 and 2012 at Uyanga, Cross River State, within the jurisdiction of the High Court of Cross River State, with the intent to defraud, stole N27. 3 million being property of Ekondo Microfinance Bank Limited and thereby committed an offence punishable under Section 390 of the Criminal Code law, CAP C16 (VOL 3) of the Laws of Cross River State of Nigeria,2004 and punishable under Section 390(9) of the same Law.”

He pleaded “not guilty” to the charge, thus setting the stage for his trial.

With prosecution counsel, Fortune Amina Asemebo proving the case beyond reasonable doubt, Justice Onyebueke convicted and sentenced him to prison, with an option of restituting N15 million to Ekondo Microfinance Bank.

Bassey’s journey to prison began sometime in July 2016 when he was arrested by the EFCC upon intelligence that he used his position as the branch manager of Ekondo Microfinance Bank, Uyanga, Cross Rivers State to convert N27.3 million belonging to the bank to his private use.

He did this by personally carting away the money from the bank's vault and gaving same to his fronts for execution of non-existent contracts for the bank.