EFCC Grills Ex-Banker For Alleged Criminal Diversion Of Customer’s ₦515m
Obinna Nwaobi accused of authorising transfer from DAHUA Paper Company’s loan repayment account without approval
Operatives of the Enugu Zonal Directorate of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have commenced investigations into the activities of Obinna Nwaobi, a former Head of Operations of a new generation bank, for allegedly authorising the criminal diversion of ₦515,000,000 from the Debt Service Reserve Account (DSRA) belonging to a customer, DAHUA Paper Company, without authorisation. The Commission had received a petition dated June 22, 2026, from the bank against Nwaobi, alleging that the said sum left the customer’s account in three tranches of ₦200,000,000, ₦150,000,000 and ₦165,000,000, respectively, on July 17, 2024.
According to the petitioner, the said account from which the money was moved was reactivated in June 2024 and, upon reactivation, was not placed on Post No Debit (PND) as required, which led to the alleged fraudulent withdrawals from the account. “These transactions were processed from our Okpara Avenue, Enugu Branch, using forged documents and authorised by Obinna Nwaobi (Head of Operations),” the petitioner alleged. Preliminary investigations revealed that the said account is a Bank of Industry loan repayment account which is not accessible to customers, as it is meant for repayment of loan.
The suspect is currently standing trial for another case of unauthorised withdrawal of $510,000 before a Federal High Court in Enugu. He was arraigned on Thursday, November 13, 2025, on a nine-count charge bordering on forgery and criminal diversion of $510,000, also belonging to a customer of the same bank. The bank had alerted the Commission, through a petition, alleging that the sum of $510,000 belonging to its customer, Lantern Gate Nigeria Limited, was moved to six different accounts on the authorisation of the suspect, who was Head of Operations at that time, without the approval of the customer.
The EFCC said Nwaobi will be charged to court over the alleged ₦515 million diversion as soon as investigations are concluded. The latest probe adds to the pending $510,000 case already before the Federal High Court in Enugu, raising fresh concerns about internal controls and authorisation processes within the banking system.
