The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Thursday, June 24, arraigned a former bank manager, Constancia Duk-oye and her husband, Dukwe Oye Titus, on an 11-count charge bordering on criminal conspiracy to obtain money by false pretence and forgery to the tune of N60.5 million.
Also docked before Justice Ibrahim Buba of the Federal High Court sitting in Enugu alongside the couple, were the second defendant’s company, Douktech Services Limited and Protecy N.Ugbor, now at large.
Spokesperson for the EFCC, Wilson Uwujaren, said the 1st defendant who was a former branch manager of Polaris Bank Plc allegedly abused her position by using depositors’ fixed deposit, through false representation, as collateral to obtain a loan facility for herself and the second defendant (Dukwe Oye Titus) and third defendant (Douktech Services limited).
One of the charges reads, “that you Constancia Duk- Oye (while being branch manager of Polaris Bank Plc) sometime in the year 2018 at Enugu within the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, Enugu did commit a felony to wit, with intent to defraud, obtained by false pretence the bond in the sum of N27,500,000.000( Twenty- seven Million, Five Hundred Thousand Naira) from Daniel Steel Limited when you represented to her that you have a contract awarded to your company, which pretence you knew to be false and thereby committed an offence contrary to section 1(1) (a) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act No.14 2006 and punishable under section 1(3) of the same Act.”
The defendants pleaded ‘not guilty’ when the charges were read to them, prompting the prosecution counsel F.A.I Asemebo to ask the court for a date for the commencement of trial.
The defence counsel, Izevbigie Iyebosa however informed the Court of pending applications for the bail of his the clients.
Justice Buba granted the defendants bail in the sum of N100 million Naira each and a surety in like sum., with an order that the surety must be resident in Enugu and swear an affidavit of means.
The case has been adjourned till July 9, 2021 for trial, while the defendants were remanded in Custodial centre pending the fulfilment of their bail condition.
