Nomba Manager Arraigned Over $50,487 Cross-Border Fraud

Nomba Financial Services manager, associate arraigned over alleged $50,487 cross-border fraud

NaijaChoice News reports that an Agent Network Manager with Nomba Financial Services Limited, Uche Anderson Chiekea, and his associate, Joy Oluchi Ani, were arraigned on Friday before a Federal High Court in Lagos over an alleged $50,487 fraud and money laundering scheme spanning Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The Force Criminal Investigation Department Annex in Alagbon-Ikoyi dragged the pair before Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa on a six-count charge bordering on conspiracy, unlawful diversion of funds, tampering with approved financial terms and money laundering.

Prosecutor Barrister Clifton Onovo, who stood in for Barrister Stanley Afoaku, told the court that Chiekea and Ani conspired with others still at large to commit the offences between February and May 2025.

The defendants were accused of moving illicit funds across borders in breach of the Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act, 2022. They allegedly converted and transferred the $50,487 knowing the money came from illegal sources, with the clear aim of hiding its origin.

Operatives said the transactions were deliberately broken down to avoid detection by the financial system. Chiekea was further accused of abusing his position at Nomba, a fintech firm trusted by hundreds of thousands of Nigerian businesses with operations in Nigeria and the DRC, by diverting company funds meant for agents and customers.

He allegedly manipulated service fees and interest charges imposed on agents without approval from the company or its banking partners, presenting the hikes as official.

The alleged offences contravene sections of the Money Laundering Act 2022, the Criminal Code Act, the Advance Fee Fraud Act 2006 and the Corrupt Practices Act 2000.

Both defendants pleaded not guilty when the charges were read to them. Their counsel, E. J. Kachichukwu, moved for bail, which the prosecution did not oppose.

Justice Lewis-Allagoa granted each of them bail in the sum of N10 million with one surety each in like sum. The surety must be a landed property owner within the court’s jurisdiction.

The judge, however, ordered that the defendants be remanded at the Nigerian Correctional Service facility until the bail conditions are perfected. He adjourned the matter to May 22 and 25, 2026 for trial.