A Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos, presided over by Justice Daniel Osiagor, has ordered the remand of four individuals, three men and one woman, accused of hacking a payment platform and stealing N95,907,884.13.

The suspects: Ada Chinyere Onuwualu, Okeke Innocent, Njoku Emmanuel Ejike, and Ogaga Iyomo, had previously pleaded not guilty to the charges filed against them by the Force Criminal Investigation Department (ForceCID) Annex in Alagbon, Ikoyi, Lagos.

The defendants, who were arraigned on Thursday, are facing a seven-count charge bordering on conspiracy, hacking, unlawful conversion of funds, stealing, and receiving stolen property.

According to the prosecution, the offences were committed in June 2025 at No. 20 Adesola Street, Ikorodu, Lagos State. The defendants allegedly hacked into the central system of Quick Collect Company and fraudulently transferred N95,907,884.13 into various bank accounts.

The prosecution further alleged that part of the stolen funds was converted into Kenyan Shillings, totalling approximately KES 8,073,689.99.

Specifically, Ada Chinyere Onuwualu was alleged to have received N36.2 million, which she reportedly deposited into her Keystone Bank account, number 6050134351.

All defendants were charged under several laws, including the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud-Related Offences Act (2006), the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act (2015), and relevant sections of the Criminal Code Act.

While the defendants maintained their not-guilty plea, the prosecutor requested that the court set a trial date and order their remand pending trial.

However, the defence lawyers informed the court that they had filed bail applications on behalf of their clients. The prosecution countered that it had not received the applications and argued that if bail were to be granted, strict conditions should be imposed to ensure the defendants’ appearance at trial.

In his ruling, Justice Osiagor granted bail to each defendant in the sum of N10 million with one surety. The surety, he added, must possess a Certificate of Occupancy for landed property and hold a Grade Level 10 position in a government establishment.

The judge ordered that the defendants be remanded at the Nigerian Correctional Service (NCoS) facility in Lagos pending the fulfilment of their bail conditions. (Nigerian Tribune)

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