The investigation followed a petition dated 22 June 2026, submitted to the commission by the bank, alleging that the money was transferred from the customer’s account in three separate transactions of N200 million, N150 million and N165 million on 17 July 2024.
According to the petition, the account was reactivated in June 2024 but was not placed on Post No Debit (PND), as required, thereby exposing it to unauthorised withdrawals.
The bank alleged that the transactions were processed through its Okpara Avenue branch in Enugu using forged documents and were authorised by Nwaobi, who was the Head of Operations at the time.
Preliminary investigations by the EFCC reportedly revealed that the account was a Bank of Industry loan repayment account, which was not accessible to customers and was specifically designated for loan repayments.
The commission also established that withdrawals or transfers to third-party accounts from such accounts required approval from the Account Officer, Regional Manager and Credit Monitoring Team.
However, the alleged transactions were carried out using forged documents without the required approvals, with Nwaobi allegedly authorising the transfers.
The former banker is also facing trial before a Federal High Court in Enugu over the alleged unauthorised diversion of $510,000 belonging to another customer of the same bank, Lantern Gate Nigeria Limited.
He was arraigned on 13 November 2025 on a nine-count charge bordering on forgery and criminal diversion of the funds.
The bank had petitioned the EFCC, alleging that the $510,000 was transferred into six different accounts without the customer’s approval, allegedly on the authorisation of Nwaobi, who was then the Head of Operations.
The commission said Nwaobi would be charged to court over the alleged N515 million diversion upon the conclusion of investigations
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