Lagos Court Jails Two Men for N8.56bn Cyber Heist on Nigerian Bank

A Lagos Special Offences Court has sentenced two men to 26 months in prison after they admitted taking part in an N8.56bn cyber fraud targeting Wema Bank’s computer servers.

Justice Rahman Oshodi delivered the judgment on Tuesday, convicting Hamza Zakaria and Nurudeen Ibrahim for unlawful access to a bank’s computer systems and conspiracy to steal billions of naira in what investigators described as a “coordinated digital breach”.

Zakaria and Ibrahim were first arraigned on 2 May 2025 alongside other suspects still on the run. They initially denied the allegations but later changed their pleas after the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) amended the charges.

EFCC counsel Muhammad Bashir called operative Airende Monday, who tendered documents detailing how the bank’s internal systems were compromised in January 2025. Prosecutors said the breach allowed the suspects to manipulate servers and divert large sums into criminal accounts.

Delivering the verdict, Justice Oshodi said:
“I find the defendants guilty in the two-count amended information, and I convict them accordingly. This is the judgment of the court.”

The court handed down eight months’ imprisonment on the first count and 18 months on the second, to run concurrently. Both men were also given the option of paying a N50,000 fine.

The EFCC said the investigation is ongoing and efforts are underway to track down other members of the syndicate believed to have orchestrated one of the country’s biggest bank cyber intrusions in recent years.