Ex-NEXIM Bank boss, Roberts Orya bags 490 years imprisonment for fraud

By Ayorinde Oluokun/Abuja

A former Managing Director, Nigerian Export Import Bank, NEXIM, Mr Roberts Orya was on Thursday sentenced to 490 years imprisonment after he was convicted on charges bordering on N2.4 billion bank fraud.

Orya who served as the managing director of NEXIM Bank between 2009 and 2016 was convicted and sentenced by Justice F.E. Messiri of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, High Court, Abuja, Dele Oyewale, the spokesperson for the anti-graft agency said in a statement on Thursday.

His trial began in 2021 when the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC arraigned him on a 49-count charge, bordering on obtaining money by false pretences, forgery and advance fee fraud to the tune of N2.4 billion.

In one of the charges, EFCC accused Orya of inducing NEXIM to pay to Treasuremix Construction Limited the sum of N488,000,000 as loan under the pretence that the Directors of Luxurium Leisure Services Limited applied for and are the beneficiaries of the said loan on or about the 21st day of September 2011 in Abuja.

EFCC said the action of Orya was an offence contrary to section 1(1)(b) of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related Offences Act 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.”

In another count, the anti-graft agency alleged that Orya while being the Managing Director of NEXIM BANK induced the bank to pay to Treasuremix Construction Limited the sum of N630 million as loan under the pretence that the Directors of Luxurium Leisure Services Limited applied for and are the beneficiaries of the said loan on or about the 19th February 2013.

EFCC said the action was an offence contrary to Section 1(1) (b) of Advance Fee Fraud and Other Fraud Related And Other Related Offences Act 2006 and punishable under Section 1(3) of the same Act.”

Orya pleaded “not guilty” to the charges, thus setting the stage for his trial.

In the course of the trial, the prosecution counsel, Samuel Ugwuebulam called seven witnesses to establish the defendant’s guilt.

Justice Messiri in his judgment held that the prosecution proved its case beyond every reasonable doubt and found the defendant guilty as charged on all the 49 counts and sentenced him to 10 years imprisonment on each, totaling 490 years.

The sentences, however, are to run concurrently.

Orya was appointed NEXIM BANK boss on August 14, 2009 by the late President Umaru Yar’Adua and was reappointed by former President Goodluck Jonathan on August 18, 2014.