Izuchukwu E.N
In the midst of the severe cash shortage that is wreaking havoc on the country, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) invaded the Sterling Bank head office in Abuja and found N258 million secreted in the bank’s vaults.
According to The Site News, Azuka Ogugua, the anti-graft agency’s spokesperson, announced the burst in a statement on Tuesday.
The ICPC stated that the money, all new naira notes, was found in the vault of Sterling Bank.
Ogugua said: “Operatives of ICPC discovered the sum of Two Hundred and Fifty-Eight Million Naira (N258m) stashed in the vault at the head office of Sterling Bank in Abuja.”
She said investigation showed that the money was released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for distribution but Sterling Bank only released the sum of N5 million each to be distributed to their various branches.
She said both the Regional and Service managers were arrested and later granted administrative bail while investigation continues.
The ICPC official added that the Commission has also effected the arrest of the Head of Operations, Keystone Bank, Mararaba in Nasarawa State for frustrating its customers at getting the new Naira notes.
She said the ICPC team, while on its routine operation, found out that the Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) at the branch were not dispensing to its customers, while other bank customers were accessing only One Thousand Naira.
“It was only after the arrest was made and clarification received from CBN that the position of the officers of the Bank was not correct, that the ATMs started dispensing Five Thousand Naira to non-customers and Ten Thousand Naira to its customers,” she said.
