Cash Scarcity: ICPC Busts Another Bank, Discovers Hidden N250m New Naira Notes, Arrests Officials

• While Nigerians have been reporting hardship in getting cash for daily transactions, some banks are said to be hoarding millions of new naira notes in their vaults
• The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) caught one of such banks on Tuesday, February 7
• Azuka Ogugua, the spokesperson of the anti-graft agency, said N258 million stashed in the vaults of the Abuja head office of Sterling Bank has been discovered

FCT, Abuja - The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) says it has discovered N258 million stashed in a bank's vaults amid the country's ongoing cash scarcity.

Azuka Ogugua, the spokesperson of the anti-graft agency, disclosed this in a statement released Tuesday night, February 7, 2023.

Read also

Sterling Bank reacts to allegation of hoarding N258 million by ICPC

He said the money, all new naira notes, was found in the vault of the Abuja head office of Sterling Bank.

“Operatives of ICPC discovered the sum of Two Hundred and Fifty-Eight Million Naira (N258m) stashed in the vault at the head office of Sterling Bank in Abuja,” she said.

According to Oguagua, investigations showed that the money was released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for distribution.

“The team, however, found out that only the sum of N5 million each was distributed to their various branches."

Bank officials arrested

Ogugua added that the ICPC arrested the regional and service managers of the bank. They were, however, granted administrative bail while investigations were ongoing.

The ICPC spokesperson added that the commission has also effected the arrest of the head of operations of Keystone Bank at Mararaba in Nasarawa state for frustrating its customers in their attempt to get the new Naira notes.

Read also

2023 polls: Gov Sanwo Olu suspends campaign activities indefinitely, gives reason

ICPC finds new naira notes hidden in bank's safe lock

In a related development, the ICPC discovered bundles of new naira notes hidden in a bank's vault.

In a video made public on its verified Twitter page on Saturday, February 4, 2023, the commission's officials were seen ordering a bank official to open the safe.

When the lock was opened, the bank official shrugged, indicating that there were no new naira notes in the safe. Further checks, however, revealed a bunch of new notes stashed deeply inside the safe, behind the old N1,000 naira notes.

Source: Legit.ng