Justice Yellim Bogoro of the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, has sentenced Solomon Stephen Ufayo, an employee of Ecobank Nigeria Plc, to one year in prison for cybercrime involving N2,404,000.

Ufayo was arraigned on May 16, 2025, by the Lagos Zonal Directorate 2 of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a single count of cybercrime.

According to the charge, between March 10 and 28, 2025, while serving as a Relief Teller at Ecobank, Ufayo impersonated a customer, Ogunfodunrin Omowunmi Ajoke. He fraudulently carried out deposit and withdrawal transactions on her account.

The charge reads: “You, Solomon Stephen Ufayo, between March 10 and 28, 2025, in Lagos within the jurisdiction of this Honourable Court, while employed as a Relief Teller at Ecobank Nigeria Limited, falsely represented yourself as Ogunfodunrin Omowunmi Ajoke by entering fraudulent deposit and withdrawal transactions on her account (No. 2801086259), with intent to unlawfully benefit, thereby committing an offence under Section 22(2)(b)(i) of the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, etc) Act, 2015, punishable under Section 22(2)(b) of the same Act.”

Ufayo pleaded guilty when the charge was read in court.

Prosecuting counsel Abdulhamid L. Tukur called EFCC operative David Ngale Gajere to present the facts. Gajere explained that Ufayo used fake deposits to credit the victim’s account and later withdrew a total of N2,404,000 using forged withdrawal slips. The stolen funds were transferred to his personal Opay account without the account holder’s authorization.

Gajere added that Ufayo confessed during interrogation and issued a bank draft for N2,404,000 as restitution.

During sentencing, Ufayo appealed for leniency, citing financial struggles and his wife’s pregnancy as motivation for his actions. He expressed remorse and claimed to have learned from the incident.

Justice Bogoro sentenced him to one year in prison with an option of a N500,000 fine and ordered him to complete two weeks of community service.