Adamawa court sentences bank MD to five years’ jail term

Nkereuwem Effiong

Justice Benjamin Lawan Manji of the Adamawa State High Court has sentenced the Managing Director of Bonghe Microfinance Bank, Grace Andreas Karka, to five years in prison.

Karka was arraigned by the Gombe Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a two-count charge of criminal conspiracy and cheating involving N32 million.

One the charges read: “That you Grace Andreas Karka and Prince Moses Batalu between August 2020 and March 2021 in Yola, Adamawa State within the jurisdiction of this honourable court did agree amongst yourselves to do an illegal act to wit theft in the sum of N66,792,960.00  from Bonghe Micro Finance Bank Nigeria Limited with account number 2013668857 domiciled with First bank Nigeria limited by dishonestly moving the said sum without necessary approval contrary to Section 61(2) of the Adamawa State penal Code Law 2018.

Head, Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, said in a statement on Thursday, 30 October 2025 that Karka was first arraigned on November 11, 2024, where she pleaded not guilty to the two-count charge, prompting a full trial.

During the proceedings, prosecution counsel Mubarak Tijani called several witnesses and presented multiple documents to establish the case, while the defence produced three witnesses in Karka’s defence.

Delivering judgment on October 17, 2025, Justice Manji held that the prosecution had proven its case beyond a reasonable doubt and consequently convicted Karka on both counts. She was sentenced to five years’ imprisonment, with an option of a ₦3 million fine on each count. The sentences are to run concurrently.

The court further ordered Karka to refund ₦29,877,040 to the petitioner.

Her ordeal began in 2021 when Bonghe Microfinance Bank, during an internal audit of its First Bank accounts, uncovered irregular transactions involving an unregistered account holder.

Subsequent investigations revealed that Karka, then Managing Director, had illegally transferred ₦32 million to one Prince Moses Batalu without approval.

Efforts by the bank to recover the funds were unsuccessful.